The Rise of a Warrior: Naruto: Shippuden: Part I
by The Legendary Dragon Reaper
Summary: Three years have come and gone, and while Tatsu and the ninja of the Hidden Leaf have grown stronger, they'll have a whole new group of enemies to face. The era of Team Dragon has arrived, but can they rise to the challenge? Sequel to the Rise of a Warrior: Naruto, second story in my Naruto trilogy. Please read each chapter until the end and check for notes.
1. The Dragon Blade, Mission to Mount Koryu

About 2 years had passed since the Retrieval Mission and Naruto's departure to train with Jiraiya, and everyone had been training fiercely, especially Tatsu, Sasuke and Lee in preparation for the battles with the Akatsuki that had yet to come.

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Tatsu's Shadow Clones dispersed, leaving him panting heavily with sweat dripping down his face to no end ' _Dammit, I'm not getting anywhere on this!'_

"Easy." Sasuke knelt down beside him "It's been a full day since we started trying to add your wind change in nature to your Rasengan, and you're using about 200 Shadow Clones now. You've just achieved what the average ninja would take 80 full days to do, but I guess that's just not enough for you."

"It'll be enough when I can beat the Akatsuki. This training is impossible, I can't wrap my head around this and it feels like 200 Shadow Clones are my limit. It's taking all my concentration to form the basic Rasengan with one hand, but trying to use another hand is just way too much for me right now."

"You're unusually negative, that's not like you. You don't sound like the Tatsu Kamikaze that I know."

"That's because you're not the one who has to look to the left and the right at the same time. Look Sasuke, unless you've got some ancient wisdom the Fourth Hokage wouldn't be able to come up with I don't wanna hear it."

"Actually, I've been brainstorming and I think I have an idea. But before I get to that, let's deal with this little left and right example you mentioned." his Sanda Sharingan formed in his eyes and he formed a single Thunder Clone "See? With a clone I can look to the left and the right at the same time, this is what you meant right?"

Tatsu blinked, before realization dawned on his face "Now I get it!"

' _What does he get? That look on his face never ends well.'_

"Maybe if I-" Tatsu was cut off when the ground started shaking violently "What the-?"

"An earthquake?"

The shaking stopped after a moment, and Tatsu was still concerned "You noticed it right Sasuke?"

"Yeah, the way that shaking stopped seemed unnatural."

"We'd better head back." then he felt another one "That one was closer by the first."

"I think it was by Shirato Street."

"Let's move!" and they took off.

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Tatsu looked around at the destruction throughout Shirato Street "Who would do something like this?"

"We don't know what we're up against, don't lose your head." Sasuke warned.

"I'm the one who should be telling you that. We'd better go see Lady Tsunade, she might have some info on what's going on." Tatsu advanced forward, with Sasuke following, and found several odd creatures in front of him "The hell are these things?"

"My best guess is that they're the ones who did this." he saw a girl hiding amongst the debris holding something wrapped in a cloth "Sasuke."

"Yeah, you wanna take them and save her?"

"Why not? I need to vent a little frustration." he leapt down in front of the creatures and formed several hand seals " **Fire Style: Crimson Dragon!"** he fired a red fire dragon, quickly incinerating the creatures, then went over to the girl "Are you alright?"

The girl nodded shakily "Y-Yes, thank you."

"Sure."

Then Sasuke came over "Looks like you're done."

"They were clearly the fodder soldiers." then he turned to the girl "You don't have to be afraid. I'm Tatsu Kamikaze, this is Sasuke Uchiha. You don't look like you're from this village, we'll escort you somewhere safe."

"No!" the girl quickly cut him off "I need to speak to the Hokage right away."

"Right, we'll take you to see her once things settle down."

"No, there's something I must tell her immediately! Please, please take me to the Hokage."

"Well we are on our way to see her anyway, I don't see the harm. Still though we should hurry, get on." he took the girl onto his back and ran ahead, with Sasuke following, only to find more creatures in front of him "Son of a bitch, there's more of them?"

"Let me get this one." Sasuke drew his Raijin katana and quickly cut the creatures down, causing them to disappear, only for more to appear in their place "Dammit, they're everywhere. We'd better conserve our chakra."

"Right."

" **Leaf Hurricane!"** in a green blur, Lee appeared and defeated several enemies "Are you guys alright?"

"We're fine, we just have to get past them."

"Alright. Neji, more over here!"

Then Neji showed up "So they appeared here as well."

"Are you saying they're in other areas?" asked Tatsu.

"Yes, it would seem quite a number of them have entered the village."

"But it doesn't seem right, even if there were so many of them I doubt they'd be able to cause something like this."

"When I used my Byakugan a moment ago, I saw something different. It was gigantic."

"How big was it? And is it related to those huge dust clouds? We'd probably be able to learn something from Lady Tsunade, but first we've gotta do something about these guys right here."

"Don't worry, we can handle this." Lee told him "Neji, let's do it."

"Thanks Lee. Sasuke, let's go!" and he took off, with Sasuke following, leaving Lee and Neji to deal with the creatures.

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"Lady Tsunade!" Tatsu and Sasuke rushed onto the roof of the Hokage building "What's going on?"

Tsunade shook her head "I'm not sure, we're gathering information as we speak. There's the occasional dust cloud and mysterious enemies, that's all we know for now."

"We already encountered these mysterious enemies." Sasuke told her "We fought with them too, they didn't really feel alive to be honest."

"I see, is there anything else you can tell me?"

"There is." Tatsu let the girl off his back "This girl here wanted to see you-" he was cut off by another earthquake.

The girl seemed anxious "The Earth Genryu, it's nearby."

"The Earth What now?"

"That was the most violent quake yet." that was when Kakashi showed up.

"How'd it go?" asked Tsunade "Did you find anything?"

"I'm afraid not. The entire village is in chaos, I only got bizarre witness accounts."

"Bizarre?"

"Just what I said, stuff about monsters and a gigantic turtle."

"We probably ran into those monsters you were talking about." Tatsu told him "Still though, I doubt they could've caused this much damage to the village."

"If it's a natural disaster then I wonder if it's related to the phenomenon at Mount Koryu."

"Mount Koryu… I remember my brother telling me legends about that sacred mountain…"

"It does exist, but it's quite a distance from the Land of Fire." Tsunade pointed out "So then how could it be related to what's happening here?"

"If I may…" the girl spoke up "I-" she was cut off by another earthquake.

"What the- LOOK OUT!" Tatsu quickly grabbed the girl and got her away from what appeared to be a massive rock dragon.

The dragon then brought down one of its claws.

"Tatsu!" Tsunade stopped the claw with her brute strength.

Tatsu then leapt back, again taking the girl with him, and formed several hand seals "Lady Tsunade, fall back! **Fire Style: Crimson Dragon!"** once Tsunade leapt back, he breathed out a large red fire dragon.

The dragon was unfazed and brought down its claw again.

"Tatsu, get back!" Sasuke quickly activated his Sanda Sharingan and drew his Raijin kanata, then formed a hand seal " **Lightning Blade: Twin Lightning Shiver!"** he struck the dragon's base with a Chidori, then blitzed left and right as he ascended, ending with one final lightning strike downwards, causing the beast to howl in pain "Looks like the strengths and weakness of the five changes in chakra nature still work, so then if we-"

"It's no use!" the girl revealed a small dagger with a hole in the handle "Against Genryu, only this Dragon Blade can defeat them, but only someone with the Dragonseed in their hearts may unlock its true power."

"How can you tell if someone has the Dragonseed?"

"Grip the handle, and if you are the one then the blade's true power will be unleashed."

' _Sounds a lot like with the Raijin Blade._ Tatsu, grip the handle ."

"Gripping the handle." Tatsu gripped the handle, and the sword was engulfed in a white light, and when it dissipated the sword had evolved from a standard-looking dagger into a silver katana with a black handle, a dragon mark on either side of the blade, and a ring on the handle around the size of Tatsu's palm "Is that good?"

"Very." the girl smiled "It means that you are the blade's true master, Tatsu Kamikaze."

"So I go fight it?"

"Please do so."

"Well alright then. Sasuke, I'll give you the signal to back me up." and he charged in, beginning the real battle.

The Genryu swept its claw, unleashing a barrage of small boulders that grew larger the further they progressed.

Tatsu was able to block, but was sent back by the force, and only just barely managed to dodge the boulders coming up from the ground, then managed to cut the Genryu across the face ' _This Dragon Blade does seem to be working against it, and the power I feel from it is almost overwhelming._ Sasuke, now!"

"Right! **Raijin Chidori!"** using a Raijin-powered Chidori, Sasuke blitzed across the rooftop, hitting the Genryu with a blast of lightning, causing it to collapse.

Then the Genryu got up and let out an angry roar, but with a scale on the tip of its nose glowing.

"Please aim for the shining scale!" the girl called.

"Shining Scale… I see it!" taking the opportunity while the Genryu was overcome with pain from Sasuke's blast, Tatsu struck the shining scale on the Genryu's nose, causing a strange orb to emerge and fall to the ground. He then landed on the ground and picked up the orb "What the hell is this thing?"

"Tatsu, look out!" Kakashi barked.

"Wha-" it was too late and Tatsu was knocked unconscious by the Genryu's claw falling on him, as well as several boulders.

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Tatsu later came to in the hospital "Damn, I feel like I got run over by an angry Choji…"

"Looks like you're awake."

Tatsu looked to see Tsunade on one side of his bed and Kakashi on the other "Why the hell am I in the hospital?"

"You don't remember? You fought that gigantic rock dragon." Kakashi told him.

"Oh yeah, did I kill it?"

"Well no, you actually just knocked it out but it's not a threat now." Tsunade told him.

"I see. Still though, it felt like that Dragon Blade I was using really helped me take that thing down. What about that girl by the way?"

"Her name is Akari Tatsushiro."

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Sasuke was discussing with Akari and Kin on the roof "So Akari, that giant Earth Genryu was after the Dragon Blade you were carrying."

Akari nodded "Yes, all of this happened because of it."

"Even those mud doll-like creatures that appeared in the village?" asked Kin.

"Mugonhei, soulless soldiers created to protect the Genryu."

"Who created those things?"

"They were made in the days of old, but the Tatsushiro clan sealed them long ago. My brother Kuroma, he revived them to gather the power of the Genryu."

"Power of the Genryu, huh…" Sasuke muttered "Since that was the Earth Genryu, I'm guessing there are others like Fire and Water?"

"Yes. Fire, wind, lightning, earth, water. Those are the 5 Genryu."

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"Combining the powers of the 5 dragons will grant unimaginable power." Kakashi explained.

Tatsu's eyes shot wide "Beyond even the Kyuubi? That's what Akari's brother is trying to do?"

"According to our understanding, yeah."

"But why?"

"Well from what she said, it's so he can destroy the world."

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"That honestly doesn't sound very believable." Kin commented.

"To erase the natural energy of this world and create one where people can't live, those were his words." Akari told them.

"Reports from the group sent to Mount Koryu say that the land is deteriorating." Sasuke pointed out "Looks like the area of destruction is expanding."

"This Kuroma person, does this mean he plans to use this power to eliminate people who stand against him?" asked Kin.

"Probably. It looks like Mount Koryu is a key to this as well."

Akari nodded "That's correct, Mount Koryu is a unique land to begin with."

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"What do you mean unique?" asked Tatsu.

"According to reports, entering Mount Koryu disrupts one's inner chakra." explained Tsunade.

"Huh?"

"That means using ninjutsu becomes more difficult, making it harder to fight."

"And where do you keep getting these reports?"

"We needed to confirm Akari's story while you were unconscious, I put together a small team and sent them to Mount Koryu. We have confirmed the effect of the Genryu revival, as well as countless Mugonhei."

"So what she said was…"

"It's rather credible."

"On top of that, there's some information we received a little while ago." Kakashi cut in "The legends of the Genryu date back to ancient times, if they truly do exist then it's only natural that _they_ couldn't ignore them."

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"The Akatsuki could be involved in this as well." Kin noted, having been informed about the Akatsuki by Tatsu and Sasuke a few months before.

"Kakashi got some info that a number of Akatsuki are already heading to Mount Koryu as we speak." Sasuke pointed out "They might seek them for the same purpose as the Tailed Beasts, whatever that may be."

"So Dosu, Neji and Lee are…"

"Right, once Tatsu wakes up the Hokage wants us and a few others to go rescue them."

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"So Lee's team is still at Mount Koryu?" Tatsu repeated.

"Yes, and we've lost contact with those three." Tsunade told him.

"Well I guess I shouldn't be too worried, Lee can hold his own for a good long while even if he can't use chakra. Dosu and Neji however…"

"Have some faith, even if you were to go there right now then you'd be in for a very rude awakening. We've prepared some special equipment, even if it was a rush job. It will allow you to control your chakra in special places like Mount Koryu."

"Special equipment?"

"Think of it as a special costume to wear while inside Mount Koryu." Kakashi told him "Also, since I can't come with you I'll be sending along in my place."

"Who would that be?"

"That would be me."

Tatsu looked to see a figure in an ANBU mask appear "Oh hey, Tenzo right?"

"Yamato for this mission, I look forward to working under you."

"Hold on, what?"

"You heard him, you're the leader for this mission." Tsunade told him.

"...What?"

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After about an hour, Tsunade stood before Tatsu, Sasuke, Kin, Akari and Yamato, all of them being clad in the same new equipment for the mission "I will now explain the details of this mission. Your squad will head to Mount Koryu. You have two objectives: The first is to rescue and join Dosu, Lee and Neji. The other is to prevent Kuroma from continuing his destructive actions. According to the information we've gathered, Kuroma has amassed extraordinary power. I give you leave to take whatever steps you feel are necessary to deal with him. The second objective is also a request from Akari Tatsushiro."

"There's something I don't understand." Tatsu cut in "Why is Akari's brother trying to do this in the first place?"

"My brother said it was for revenge." Akari told him.

"Revenge for what?"

"Revenge against the world, my brother blames the world for what happened to him."

"Blaming the whole world sounds a little over the top. Still, that giant Earth Genryu and all those Mugonhei. If what appeared here in the village was just the tip of the iceberg then his claim of wanting revenge against the world might not be an exaggeration. Still though, to go to such extreme lengths for revenge, what did people do to your brother?"

"That's…"

"It might be related to this mission, could you please tell us about it?"

"Well by the time we were old enough to understand, we were already drifting. We are the last descendants of a clan that was nearly wiped out and exiled. Because of our disfigurements, we were loathed no matter where we went. Some hated us because we were exiled." she removed the cloth from her head, revealing two small horns "At first my brother and I hated the lives we had to lead, he later directed his anger at the great nations that destroyed our clan."

"Great nations?"

"She means the Land of Fire and the other neighboring countries." Kakashi clarified "This was probably before the Great Ninja Wars, before the current nations were formed."

"You mean like sins of the father shall fall upon the son?"

"Something like that."

"Makes sense."

"My brother Kuroma sees us as innocents." Akari continued "The ones at fault are those who created a world where only they can survive."

"And that's why he wants revenge?"

"Yes. Of course he understood that doing such a thing isn't possible, but he discovered the Dragon Blade and learned the dragons really existed. Once he learned that, he changed."

"Revenge and power can change people." Sasuke noted ' _If it weren't for Tatsu, Kin and the rest then I probably would've turned out just like him.'_

"Kuroma plans to use the Genryus' power to become a Light Dragon."

"Taking the powers of a Genryu?" Tatsu muttered slowly "But that's like a jinchuriki. _I wonder how Naruto's doing right now.'_

"Please stop my brother, even if you must…"

"It may be necessary to sacrifice your brother." Tsunade pointed out "Are you prepared for that?"

"He doesn't listen to reason anymore. I understand that I'm being selfish, I can't give you much in the way of payment either. But there's no other choice, someone must stop my brother."

"And that's why you came to us in the Leaf Village."

"Even if we do defeat him, it won't change anything." Tatsu told her gently "Akari, are you truly fine with losing your brother?"

"But he has to be stopped from destroying the world, there's no other way."

"That's not true, I'm sure that your brother is alone and just lonely too. I was alone at one point too. It really hurt for a really long time…"

"The pain of being alone…"

"But I found people that understood my pain, people who would stand by me through anything and everything."

"Tatsu…"

"I don't know if I can explain it very well, but I think your brother is just like how a friend of mine used to be. He's angry at everyone else right now, so I'm sure he'll eventually come to understand too."

"But will my brother even listen though?"

"Your brother is important to you right?"

"He's all I have, he's precious to me."

"Then we've gotta save him, no question about it." he turned to Tsunade "We need to know more about the mission before we do this."

"Akari will be accompanying you as your guide, she requested this herself. I'll also give you versions of the special equipment for those you'll be meeting."

"Even Lee?"

"Even Lee."

"Good, because there's something I wanna try. If all goes well, I'll explain it when we get back. _If my theory is correct, I can use the purifying chakra of my Tenseigan and the same purifying chakra within the Dragon Blade, maybe it'll work…'_

"Tatsu, there is one more thing." Akari snapped him out of his thoughts.

"What is it?"

"Hold out the Dragon Blade for a moment."

Tatsu drew the Dragon Blade and held it up "Okay, what now?"

Akari held out a glowing orange orb "This Earth Dragon Orb was created from the Earth Genryu's shining scale, please try inserting this in the Dragon Blade."

"Alright." Tatsu placed the orb in the hole in the ring on the handle, causing the dragon marks on each side of the blade to glow and turn orange "What the hell?"

"This will allow the Dragon Blade to have an earth element, and since you have unleashed the true power of the Dragon Blade you can now use Earth-style jutsu as well. I don't know how effective it will be, but it should be useful."

"Thanks."

"Tatsu, here." Kakashi handed him something "This is a map of Mount Koryu, it's old but it should give you a basic grasp of where things are located."

"Thanks."

"I'd like you to get going, and above all be careful." Tsunade warned.

"You got it."

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A member of the Akatsuki, a man named Deidara, and his partner Tobi stood outside the entrance to the Earth Region of Mount Koryu "Don't get all nervous."

Tobi was exactly that, nervous "You say that Deidara, but isn't there a big scary monster in there?"

"How should I know? Whatever we face, my art explosions will kill it."

"But I mean, you know how monsters are with their super stretchy-arms and how they can live with their heads cut off! That's just way too scary!"

"...Tobi, are you talking about Kakuzu and Hidan?"

"Am I? Now that you mention it, I think I am. Wow, if I think about it like that then the Akatsuki's like a group of monsters."

Deidara stared blankly at him, which meant Tobi would get exploded later.

"Anyway, two questions. First, why am I with you instead of Sasori?"

"He refused to come, something about being with me more than I have to not being artistic enough for him."

"Uh-huh. Also, weren't Itachi and Kisame in charge of capturing the Genryu?"

"Yeah that's right, but even so I don't like letting them have all the fun."

"We shouldn't be sticking our heads into other people's business though, isn't it just that you're bored and-"

"Stop blabbering and hurry up, get going!"

"O-Okay!... Wait, you're not coming Deidara?"

"I'll look for a different entrance, there has to be someplace more artistic."

"Aw come on, you keep talking but I bet you're just as scared as me."

"...Guess what Tobi, I just decided what I'll be exploding first."

"Already? But there's nothing in particular over there."

"I'm talking about you you dumb bastard!" he formed a giant clay bird and took into the air, then dropped a mini-C3.

"Ooh, these little C3 are cute. Wait, what's with these?!"

Deidara then detonated the C3, exploding Tobi "You can take that place!" and he took off, leaving Tobi alone.

"Deidaraaa!"

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Kisame felt the tremors "Those tremors felt like an explosion, it seems Deidara and Tobi have followed us." he got no response from Itachi "Couldn't you have turned down this job?"

"It's too much for Deidara to handle alone." Itachi stated bluntly.

"You don't think Tobi will help at all? Harsh."

' _You have no idea.'_

"Something wrong?"

"No, it's nothing." Itachi stared at the mountain that was the Lightning Region "Let's go, before we capture them we need to confirm the Genryus' locations."

"You're rather cautious. Understood."

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Dragon received a messenger bird from a certain person ' _Thank you my friend._ Izumi, he says the Akatsuki are heading to Mount Koryu in search of the Genryu."

"I'm coming with you." Izumi said firmly.

"You know you can't, don't forget that that certain man cannot find out that you're alive under any circumstances or who knows what he'll do to the Hidden Leaf. I'm going to Mount Koryu alone to find that certain person. _Hopefully Orochimaru won't end up taking that hint as well or else the plan might be jeopardized.'_ and he disappeared in a green flash.

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The Hidden Leaf group entered Mount Koryu through the Water Region.

"This isn't what I expected to see." Yamato commented.

"They said the world's energy was being drained, I thought it'd look a lot worse like some sort of barren wasteland." Kin admitted.

"The Genryu were originally beings who fertilized the land of the Tatsushiro clan." Akari told them "This place could be the last remnant of that land.

"Does that mean it's as terrible as we imagined in other places?"

"As far as I know…"

"Hold it." Tatsu stopped the group when he saw some Mugonhei "Here they come, big ones too, way bigger than the ones that were sent to the village. Not that it's a problem though, the Dragon Blade was able to defeat something way bigger than these things."

"They're probably on patrol." Yamato guessed.

"Probably. Kin, take Akari and get some distance from here. Sasuke, guard the perimeter around them."

"Right." Kin led Akari further ahead, while Sasuke activated his Sanda Sharingan and created a ring made of pure lightning before going after the others.

"Yamato, bind them."

"Right." Yamato was quick to bind them with a wood-style jutsu.

' _Wood style, a secret Kekkei Genkai known only to Hashirama Senju the First Hokage himself, though Orochimaru was experimenting with the First's DNA. Maybe this guy was one of the test subjects. No wonder Kakashi wanted him on the team.'_ he then drew the Dragon Blade and cut down the Mugonhei, only for several more to appear.

"We managed to defeat them."

"I didn't think not using my chakra like normal would be this bad."

"Just one of Mount Koryu's special attractions, I doubted it until we got here but I'm glad we have this special equipment."

"Yeah."

" _Guys!"_ Kin yelled on the comlink.

"What's wrong Kin?"

" _Mugonhei are here too, Sasuke's handling them but I think you should hurry up and join us before they outnumber him.'_

"Alright, we're on our way."

" _We're just ahead of you guys, by the waterfall."_

"Keep cool, I see it from here. Yamato, let's move!" he rushed forward, only to see several more giant Mugonhei "Oh come on!"

Then Yamato made a decision "Tatsu, go help Sasuke and the others. I'll hold them off here."

"Alright Yamato, I'll leave it to you. Just catch up when you're done." and he raced off.

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Sasuke cut down the last of the Mugonhei with ease, then went over to Kin and Akari "You two alright?"

Kin pecked him on the cheek "That answer your question?"

"No, but this does." he dipped her for a makeout session that made Akari blush.

"Yo Thunderclap Loverboy!" Tatsu showed up, using the new nickname he'd come up with "In case you've forgotten, we're on a mission to stop a psychotic maniac from destroying the world here!"

Sasuke broke off the kiss after about 5 minutes "Sorry, but when you've got a girlfriend you tend to wanna get as close to some action as you can."

"...Nevermind that right now. There's too many enemies, we're gonna have to conserve our chakra and use it wisely or we're gonna be in big trouble."

"Wait." Sasuke looked up and saw a giant eagle flying above them "Wait, I think I see Orochimaru and Kabuto on there."

"So they're here too, they're not our objective but we can't ignore them."

"Agreed. **Summoning Jutsu!"** he summoned a gigantic hawk "Listen up Garada, I'm gonna need you to hang back for awhile and pursue them."

" **You want me to tail them?"**

"Just find out where they're going." he quickly formed a Thunder Clone "This clone of me will take a headset to stay in contact. Like I told Garada, just find out their objective and avoid a confrontation."

"Got it." then the clone hopped on Garada and took off.

Then Tatsu got their attention "We need to keep moving, our top priority is to find our comrades in the mountain."

"Looks like there's an entrance to a cave at the top of the waterfall." Kin noted.

"I say we climb." so Tatsu led the group up the waterfall and into the cave, where he quickly cut down some Mugonhei with the Dragon Blade as he made his way across the river and into another area, only to find himself ambushed, both entrances sealed off "Dammit, I'm locked in. _I'd better take care of these Mugonhei first. Oh well, better not waste time.'_ he then proceeded to cut down about 20 Mugonhei in about 5 minutes, causing the seals on the entrances to disappear almost instantly "Alright, that's done."

Then Sasuke finally caught up with him, Kin and Akari right behind him "Dammit man, would it kill you to wait for us?"

"Sorry."

Then Yamato contacted them " _This is Yamato, I've defeated the enemies from earlier. I'll catch up soon."_

"Got it, we've entered the mountain from a place just ahead of where you are." Tatsu led the group ahead, only to find himself outside the caves ' _You know, if this was one of those old stories from when I was a kid then there'd probably be a hidden passage behind that waterfall.'_ he then paused and tried to check it out, then checked higher up ' _There's definitely a passageway behind there but I can sense some kind of strange chakra coming from the waterfall, I can't push through it.'_ he made his way through another entrance into the caves, only to find another ambush, which he dealt with quickly "This is getting annoying."

Then Sasuke's Thunder Clone contacted them " _You guys read me? Orochimaru and Kabuto ditched the giant snake and they're riding around on what I think is some giant eagle summon. It looks to me like they're scouting."_

"So we don't know why they're here or what they're after. Keep following them but don't reveal yourself under any circumstances."

" _Got it."_ then the comlink shut off.

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Tatsu led the group onward and saw a device in front of a large door "The hell is that?"

"That is a device for opening the door." Akari told him "Please be careful, the Mugonhei protecting the devices are stronger."

Tatsu was quick to cut several of them down "Yeah you're right, instead of one slash they took two slashes each. So much stronger." then he stepped on the device, causing all of the remaining Mugonhei to stop moving, only for them to resume when the door opened completely "So that's it." he was quick to cut them down, then entered the room "Come on guys, let's-" he stopped when he saw that they were outside and he was alone "Son of a-" then he looked and saw Dosu lying on the ground "Dosu!"

"Tatsu…" Dosu rasped out "Sorry… I underestimated them… these things… they seem to be draining my chakra…"

' _I'd better hurry, Dosu looks like he's lost a lot of strength already.'_ Tatsu quickly cut down several Mugonhei, but was forced to use a small Rasengan to take out the giant one that appeared in the last leg of the ambush. Then he turned his attention to Dosu "Hang in there big guy, I'll get you back to Kin and Sasuke and then she can treat your wounds." he held out the special equipment from Tsunade "Take this too, it should work even if you put it on over your regular clothes."

"What is it?"

"Special equipment that'll let you control your chakra in this environment."

"That'll help." Dosu slowly put on the equipment, wincing from his wounds as he did "I see, my chakra feels different but I think I'll be able to help out a little."

"You're injured keep in mind, don't strain yourself until we can get Kin to treat you."

"I know, but I've still got enough strength." Dosu stood, but quickly stumbled.

"I've got you." Tatsu quickly caught him and carried him out of that room, only to find a large stone wall "I can sense Sasuke and Kin on the other side of this wall, the only problem is that my chakra control isn't at its best so I can't run up it and carry you too."

"I think I can help with that." Dosu pulled out a scroll with a dragon mark on the front "I found this in that other room not long before you arrived."

"What is it?"

"Based on the pattern and color scheme I assume it's an earth-style scroll, but for some reason I can't open it."

"Let me try something." Tatsu took the scroll and placed it on the dragon markings on the Dragon Blade, causing it to disappear and the blade of the sword to turn brown ' _Weird, I feel something._ Dosu stay back, I'm gonna try something." he sheathed the Dragon Blade and formed several hand seals " **Earth Style: Mud Wall!"** he then formed a large wall made of mud, rock and Dragon Blade chakra "Alright Dosu, let's move." he slung Dosu over his shoulder and leapt onto the mud wall and over it.

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Having ushered Kin and Akari back, Sasuke had drawn his Raijin katana and cut down the attacking Mugonhei with ease "Pointless fodder, that's all these things are."

"Guys!"

Kin and the rest looked back to see Tatsu show up through another entrance, carrying Dosu slung over his shoulder "Tatsu! Dosu?"

Tatsu set Dosu down by a wall "He's hurt pretty bad, but he's been powering through."

"I've got him." Kin knelt down beside Dosu, green energy emerging from her palms "Stay still and try not to talk."

"When did you learn medical ninjutsu?" asked Sasuke.

"I've been secretly training under Lady Tsunade the past few months, after Tatsu recommended me. I was gonna surprise you with it after I finished learning her medical ninjutsu, but I guess the secret's out."

"...That's hot."

"Moving on!" Tatsu stressed "Dosu, Lady Tsunade said that Lee and Neji are supposed to be with you. Where they are?"

Dosu let out a groan "Lee and Neji… last time I saw those two was in front of that building near the center of the mountain."

"A building near the center… were there dragon statues lined up at a large door?" asked Akari.

"Yes, why? Do you know what that is?"

"It's most likely the Ritual Hall, my brother Kuroma should be there as well."

"I see."

"Dosu, did Lee and Neji go in there?" asked Tatsu.

"When I was there, they said there was a barrier keeping them from going any further, so nobody went inside. We each split up to try and cover different Regions of Mount Koryu. I came here to the Water Region, Neji went over to the Wind Region, and Lee went over to the Lightning Region."

"One must have all five of the Dragon Orbs in order to reach the Ritual Hall." Akari explained to them "No one but my brother should be able to enter."

"Well I've got one of the Dragon Orbs, the one I got from the Earth Genryu, so nobody at all should be able to get in." Tatsu pointed out "In any case, we'd better get closer to this Ritual Hall and look for clues."

"In order to reach the central shrine housing the Ritual Hall, we need to proceed through a cave hidden behind the waterfall."

"Right." then he contacted Yamato on his headset "Yamato, you heard her. We're heading to the central shrine, I want you to meet us there and we'll discuss our next move.

" _Roger."_ then the connection severed.

"Alright guys, here's the issue. There's a cave hidden behind the waterfall further down, but the waterfall is being enhanced by some strange chakra so I can't push through it."

"Maybe you can use the Mud Wall jutsu to stop the flow of water." Dosu suggested "After all, a scroll from inside Mount Koryu might work inside it as well."

"Alright. Sasuke, Kin, Akari, you guys stay back a little ways so we're spread out and not all bunched up. Dosu, you'll be my backup for now."

"Right."

"Akari, any advice for fighting the Water Genryu? I'm pretty sure we won't be able to just waltz past it."

"There will be a large door leading to the Genryu Hall, we must go through it if we're to get to the central shrine. By the door will be a device leading to the Genryu hall, you must activate it in order to open the door."

"Good to know, now any advice for fighting the Genryu itself?"

"Using the Dragon Blade on the Water Genryu's shining scale should calm it down, and while the Genryu are all powerful their attack patterns are very predictable, except for the Wind and Lightning Genryu's, so just analyze and counter their attack patterns and you will be fine."

"Thanks. Alright Dosu, let's move."

"Right." and Dosu took off after him.

Sasuke held out an arm to stop Kin and Akari from following "We'll give it about 10 minutes, then we'll follow in case they need backup.

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After activating the device and opening the massive door leading, Tatsu led Dosu through the door and confronted the massive Water Genryu ' _The Water Genryu, the dragon residing over the power of water._ I was right, we couldn't have just waltzed past it."

"Remember what the girl said, using that sword on the shining scale should calm the thing down." Dosu reminded him "Also, what's a shining scale?"

"You damage the thing enough and this one scale on his nose begins glowing like a star." then he turned serious "It's coming, stay behind me. _I can't use the Mud Wall jutsu too much or I'll just be wasting my chakra, so I'd better focus on dodging and having Dosu binding it using Earth-style jutsu so I can attack it as much as possible._ Dosu, come on!" and he charged forward, with Dosu right behind him.

The Water Genryu launched a wave attack, getting smaller the farther to the right it went.

Tatsu blitzed toward the right and leapt over one of the smaller hurdles.

The Genryu followed with the same attack.

Tatus leapt over it again ' _Looks like there's an opening after it attacks with a wave, if that's the case then maybe I can find a way to work around that. But the only Earth-style I know is the Mud Wall jutsu, and I can't use Purple Thunder recklessly. I'll have to figure out a strategy and make it up as I go.'_ he finally got to the end.

The Genryu hissed at him and leapt back into the water, then rose up and fired a gigantic ball of water at him.

' _Stay calm, concentrate, focus only on your blade and the ball.'_ Tatsu slowly rose the Dragon Blade, and with one mighty slash, cut the water ball in half.

Then the Water Genryu moved closer to the land, both fins on the ground.

"Dosu, now!"

"Right! **Earth Style: Mud Pull Bind!"** Dosu slammed both hands into the ground, and large clumps of mud rose from the ground and attached themselves to the fins of the Water Genryu, preventing it from retreating back into the water "Go!"

"Right!" Tatsu formed several hand seals and placed both hands on the Genryu " **Lightning Style: Purple Thunder!"** purple lightning was generated from his hands and sent throughout the Genryu's body.

The Genryu howled in pain, and the shining scale appeared.

"There!" seeing the scale and the chance to cut it, Tatsu readied the Dragon Blade, charged up and cut the shining scale, causing the Water Orb to come flying out from the scale.

The Genryu collapsed, unconscious.

Tatsu quickly caught the Orb before it fell into the water "This must be the Water Orb."

"Excellent." then Akari showed up with Kin and Sasuke "Now we can pass through two of the five elemental barriers."

"Elemental barriers, so that's how we get to the Ritual Hall?"

"That's correct, I believe they are used elsewhere as well."

"So we need to get the remaining three Dragon Orbs as we track down Lee and Neji, and maybe fight off the Akatsuki and Orochimaru in the process."

"Looks like… you catch on… pretty quick…" then Dosu hunched over and coughed up blood.

"Dosu!" Kin caught him and gently lowered him to the ground "Are you alright?"

"Sorry… looks like… using too much chakra… opened up… my wounds again… during… that battle… and you took the time… to heal them too…"

"Hold on, I'll treat them right now."

"No, don't waste your time on me. I'll stay here and regain my strength, just leave some of your medical tools. I'll probably just get in the way if I come along."

"The Genryu will awaken again if too much time passes." Akari warned "Let's move to a safer area."

"Good idea."

Tatsu held out a comlink "Dosu, stay alert and standby somewhere without any enemies, if you run into any trouble then just contact us with this. In the meantime, I'll leave a Shadow Clone behind to meet up with Yamato." he formed a clone "Alright guys, let's move."

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Things were getting serious in other areas too.

Dragon stood outside the entrance to the Earth Region of Mount Koryu ' _Just like the intel says, I can't control my chakra as well as usual. Even with this special armor, I'm only at about 70%. Then again, it was either that or use those pills to give me more chakra control, but they were made by Orochimaru.'_ then he paused ' _I can feel one chakra signature deep inside this cave, and another one closing in on it though it's pretty far away too. I sense the Hidden Leaf group in the Water Region and making their way towards the center of Mount Koryu, and Orochimaru is heading towards the Lightning Region, so these must be members of the Akatsuki. I'd better hurry.'_

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Tatsu stared at the Ritual Hall in front of him "This is it."

"Are Neji and Lee inside?" asked Sasuke.

"Hold on…" Tatsu paused for a moment, then shook his head "I can't sense either of them inside, but we'd better check and take a look around the elemental barrier just in case the environment on Mount Koryu is screwing with my sensory abilities. Come on, let's go." and he led the group into the Ritual Hall.

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Dragon activated the device to open the door to the Earth Region, only to feel an earthquake coming from the other side ' _That quake was pretty strong.'_ then he paused ' _Looks like the first and second have joined up, this might be more difficult than I thought.'_

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After fighting through several Mugonhei that got bigger and stronger as time passed, the group found a figure at the end of the hall.

Akari was quick to recognize him as Kuroma "Brother!"

"You've returned Akari. Who are they?" Kuroma studied the Leaf group intently "They appear to be shinobi, and one of them wields the Dragon Blade. I see, clearly he possesses the Dragonseed."

"I brought them with me, so I can stop you."

"Stop me? You still believe that? It doesn't matter, give back the Dragon Blade that one carries."

"Hold on a minute." Tatsu cut in "Why are you doing this? Why do you have to destroy the world?"

"So Akari told you… Destroying the world? No, I'm getting my revenge."

"What's the difference?"

"What humiliations would a clan ruined by the nations of the world have to endure? Have you ever considered it? Of course not, you never think of anyone but yourselves. Our clan lived in peace, and you despised us because we were different."

"That's why you're out for revenge?" asked Sasuke.

"Yes, vengeance will be mine. Because of these horns I was made a freak, a pariah. Not once was I treated like a normal human being."

"But even then, we endured the pain together." Akari protested "So why now, why so sudden?"

"Endured it? Why did we have to endure that treatment? Why must I, a descendent of the Tatsushiro clan, endure such debasement?"

"You don't have to suffer." Tatsu cut in, taking Kuroma by surprise "No matter who or what you or Akari are, there's no reason why people can't live together in peace."

"You talk like you know everything, but there's nothing that can be done by a single person. Those who pretend to have sympathy for us always betray us in the end. How many times have I been deceived by believing in false hopes of other people?"

"Brother…" Akari murmured.

"Enough, all this talk is useless now. Akari, take the Dragon Blade and come back to me. Once I become the Light Dragon, it won't take me long to destroy the world."

"You can't do that." Tatsu protested.

"More from you?"

"Becoming a jinchuuriki hurts not just yourself but the others around you, don't tell me you can't see that. I can't let you do that."

"The others around me? Have you not heard a word I was saying? I've always been alone, the suffering of others means nothing to me."

"Why don't you get it?"

"Now Akari, come with me."

"Please brother, please listen to what Tatsu is trying to say." Akari pleaded.

"That impudent fool? Please." he launched a fireball.

Tatsu leapt back and dodged it "Wait!"

Kuroma stared for a moment, then walked through the barrier.

"Dammit, looks like we can't follow him. Come on guys, let's get out of here for now."

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Tobi stared at the destruction caused by Deidara's explosions "Nice Deidara, going with the "blow up the ceiling if the door won't open" trick!"

"Well I suppose that's one name for it." Deidara commented dryly.

"You should've just done that to begin with."

Deidara just glared at him.

"What? I'm just saying. Anyway, isn't there supposed to be a Genryu here?"

"Looks like the one that was here was sent to the Hidden Leaf."

"That means we've come up empty-handed."

"That's okay, I've confirmed other places we might be able to find them."

"Oh so you weren't just flying around for fun?" then Tobi noticed the door open, revealing Dragon on the other side "Deidara, someone's here."

Dragon slowly walked forward "Judging by those robes, you must be members of the Akatsuki."

Deidara let out a sneer "What of it?"

"You wouldn't happen to know where Itachi is would you?"

"Maybe, what's it to you?"

Dragon suddenly appeared behind him, katana at Deidara's throat.

' _He's so fast, I couldn't even follow his movements!'_

"Let me tell you how this is gonna work, you can either tell me where Itachi is, or I can just kill you and get the information from your partner."

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Tatsu led the group out of the Ritual Hall "Kuroma went beyond the other barrier, we'd have to bring it down to reach him but we can't do that without the remaining three Dragon Orbs."

Kin put a comforting hand on Akari's shoulder "I'm sorry Akari."

"For now we should focus on our other objective and search for Lee and Neji."

" _Tatsu, are you there?"_

Tatsu checked his radio "Dragon, is that you?"

" _Yes, I'm in Mount Koryu battling two members of the Akatsuki in the Earth Region of Mount Koryu."_

"Is it Itachi and Kisame?"

" _No, some blond guy who fires clay bombs and an idiot with a mask. Oh, and now the blond guy claims he's going to switch to C3, so I should probably go."_

"Alright, thanks for the heads up." then he paused.

"Something wrong?" asked Sasuke.

"The Shadow Clone I left behind in the Water Region met up with Yamato."

"So he's alright."

"Yeah, and he found the Akatsuki on the way here. He's in pursuit and they're heading towards the Fire Region."

"You mean the volcano?"

"Yeah, now let's go rendezvous with Yamato."

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Dragon had figured out the trick to Deidara's attacks using several Shadow Clones, and in the end he didn't have a scratch "So then, had enough?"

Deidara spat out some blood "Dammit, you're better than I thought. Tobi we're wasting our time here, let's go."

"Run away!" Tobi cried.

"Shut up, just follow me!"

"Deidara wait, I can't fly!" then there was a white light and an explosion.

Dragon sensed that they were retreating "Oh no, they got away. _Well I could always go after them, but they're not really my objective right now. If I'm gonna deal with the Akatsuki myself, it has to be after that certain man makes his move, and even before then I've got that crippled old bastard to deal with. I've gotta bide my time until them, but dealing with Orochimaru will have to come first.'_

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Tatsu led the group through the volcano "Remember guys, meeting up with Yamato is our first priority."

Then Yamato contacted them on the radio " _Yamato here."_

"What's the status?"

" _Sorry I lost the target, and I'm currently battling several giant Mugonhei."_

"Where are you?"

" _Deep into the volcano."_

"I can sense you from here, we're on our way. Just hold on until then."

" _Understood."_ then the connection shut off.

"We're gonna help Yamato, let's move." Tatsu quickly removed the Earth Orb from the Dragon Blade and put it in his bag, then pulled out the Water Orb and inserted it in the ring, causing the dragon marks on each side of the blade to turn blue. Then he made his way around a pit of lava and onto a door activator, opening it and leading to a new area, where he found himself in an ambush ' _Dammit, this again. Oh well, at least this time I know of a jutsu to try out with the power of the Dragon Orb.'_ he formed several quick hand seals " **Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!"** a medium-sized water dragon burst from his mouth, engulfing all of the mini and regular-sized Mugonhei ' _Not too shabby for an attack based on an element I have absolutely no experience with.'_ then he took out the giant Mugonhei with a water-enhanced Crescent Moon Dance, ending the ambush and unsealing the doors. Then he continued onwards, with Sasuke and the rest lagging behind somewhat, and found another room on the other side of a large and wide pit of lava ' _I can't jump over that, maybe I can use some water to cool it off.'_ he breathed out a blast of water, but it did nothing ' _Maybe I need one of those dragon-marked scrolls like the Mud Wall scroll Dosu found in the Water Region, they were probably made in Mount Hakurei so their properties can affect the environment here.'_ he kept going onwards until he came to a fork in the path, where he noticed something as he waited for the others to catch up ' _There's some kind of device on the ground on the other side of that pool of lava, but the lava's so hot I can't even jump over it.'_

"I think there are other two more switches like this." Akari told him.

"Good to know." he looked and saw a chest by the lava pool and opened it, revealing a white dragon scroll "It says Healing, what's that supposed to mean?"

"Place it on the Dragon Blade and it will slowly recover your stamina and chakra."

"Is that right?" Tatsu placed the scroll on the blade, and the scroll disappeared, causing the blade to glow white for a moment ' _Cool, I can feel my chakra recovering._ _Kind of slow though, so I'd better still work on conserving my chakra.'_ he looked down the right ' _I can sense some kind of cray chakra coming from the right that's messing with my senses, so that must be where the Genryu is. If that's the case, then to get to Yamato I'd have to go to the left._ Remember the drill guys, stay a ways back." and he took off.

Sasuke and the rest waited for a moment, then followed after him.

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Tatsu continued on for a little while, with the rest not far behind, and entered a room and found Yamato battling a giant two-headed Mugonhei "Yamato!"

"Tatsu." Yamato breathed a sigh of relief "Sorry, I can't beat this guy alone. Let's use the tactic we used last time."

"You mean you bind them with your wood-style and I finish them off?"

"Yep." he formed the hand seals " **Wood Style: Prison Jutsu!"** he slammed both hands into the ground, binding it.

' _Now for the finisher!_ **Rasengan!"** Tatsu slammed a Rasengan into the gut of the Mugonhei, causing it to crash to the ground.

As the Mugonhei collapsed, it fired several blasts up at the roof of the cave, causing it to cave in.

"Everyone get down!"

" **Wood Style: Domed Wall!"** Yamato formed a hand seal and a dome of wood quickly covered them. When the debris stopped falling, he released the jutsu "Everyone okay?"

"Yeah, thanks Yamato." Tatsu looked around "Looks like that thing wanted to trap us in, everyone spread out and find another exit."

"Found one." Kin called "Looks like the wall continues upwards."

"Good idea, everyone follow me." Tatsu leapt onto the wall and ran up it, then through it, with everyone else following.

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After that, the group found themselves back near the entrance to the volcano, now blocked off.

"Could you identify the Akatsuki you saw?" asked Tatsu.

"One was Itachi, I believe the other was Kisame Hoshigaki." Yamato told him.

Sasuke's eyes hardened furiously "Itachi's here?!"

"I can't be certain, I lost them once they entered the area."

"Let's see if we can track him down." Tatsu decided "Akari, are there any other paths leading out of the volcano?"

"The volcanic vent is the only exit." Akari told him.

"Alright. Yamato, Kin and Akari, you guys wait here. Sasuke and I will search inside and see what we dig up, if Itachi and Kisame are still here then we should be able to find them."

"One more thing. Tatsu, take this." Yamato handed him a scroll "I found it in the other room, I think it'll help."

"Thanks." Tatsu put the scroll on the blade and it disappeared, causing the blade to glow blue for a moment ' _Water Pistol jutsu huh? Maybe I can use it to cool off the lava and make my way over it.'_

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Tatsu, with Sasuke behind him, made his way to the door "So this is the last area."

"That means the Fire Genryu is past here." Sasuke noted.

"But if Itachi and Kisame went through here the door should be open already."

"That's true, but don't forget that we've still gotta deal with the Fire Genryu or we can't get to Kuroma."

"Right."

"For now, let's see if those switches Akari told us about can do anything."

"Right." they made their way back to the fork in the road, where he blasted a Water Pistol from his mouth to make his way over the lava and stood on the device.

"Looks like your weight alone isn't enough."

"Hold on, I think I've got an idea." Tatsu sheathed the Dragon Blade and formed several hand seals, the blade glowing brown " **Earth Style: Mud Wall!"** he formed a large boulder that activated the device, causing a mini-quake "Is that bad?"

"We won't know until we try the other devices."

"Fair enough." they made their way along the left path until they found the second device, where he used a Mud Wall, resulting in more shaking "Alright, just one more." they made their way further along the left path until they found the third and final device, resulting in an even bigger mini-quake than the other two "Okay, nothing happened."

"I wouldn't be too sure."

"What do you mean?"

"Just follow me." Sasuke led him to the outside of the room where they found Yamato, and pointed to a mini pool of lava nearby, with lava erupting upwards from it "I'm pretty sure that's supposed to lead somewhere."

Tatsu saw a round slab of rock land on top of the lava pool "Oh yeah. Come on, maybe that leads somewhere." they leapt onto it and were rocketed upwards to a new area "Okay, what's here?"

"Guys!" a voice called.

Tatsu looked to see Kin and the rest on the other side of a pool of magma "Hey guys, we found the device." he was about to leap over to them, but stopped ' _This magma is being protected by some weird chakra, the Water Pistol probably won't work.'_ he looked and saw a stone staircase on the side of the magma ' _After I get the device._ Sasuke, let's push on three."

Sasuke nodded "Alright."

"1… 2… 3!" they pushed on the device, and it activated, opening the door "Alright, let's head back."

"Right." he was about to follow Tatsu, but stopped and gave Kin a quick yet passionate kiss on the lips "When this is over, there's something I wanna ask you."

"Sasuke let's go!"

"F*ck you!" but Sasuke was about to run after him nonetheless.

"Wait!" he turned back to the others "Akari, any tips for fighting the Fire Genryu?"

"The Fire Genryu is not like the others." Akari told him "To reach the shining scale you have to damage it like the others, but you must use the Water Pistol scroll to put out the flames on each of its horns so you can reach the scale."

"Good to know, thanks. Alright Sasuke, let's move." and he took off, with Sasuke following them.

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After making their way down, Tatsu and Sasuke found the Fire Genryu "Sasuke, you know what to do."

"Formation B?" Sasuke guessed.

"Formation B. I can't spam the Water Pistol because it takes too much chakra, even with this weird healing scroll I found."

"Right."

"Oh crap it's mad, you know what we've gotta do. _Let's see, looking at it evenly the path to the Fire Genryu can be split up into three even sections, left middle and right. Let's see if I can play this out properly.'_

The Fire Genryu unleashed a large fireball down the middle.

Tatsu was quick to dodge it and quickly blitzed down the left side of the lane.

Then several fiery eruptions appeared from the ground around the Genryu.

Tatsu gracefully weaved his way around around them, then quickly dodged a sweep of fire from the Genryu's claw "Sasuke now!"

"Right! **Lightning Speed!"** Sasuke drew his Raijin katana and zig-zagged back and forth, hitting the Genryu with a large blast of lightning, causing the Genryu to fall to the ground.

Tatsu then leapt up and breathed out a Water Pistol, extinguishing the flames on one of the three horns "One down."

The Genryu got up and let out a roar, the shockwave sending them staggering backwards until they were right in front of the gate.

Tatsu drew the Dragon Blade again "Sasuke, stay back until I give the signal."

The Genryu fired one fireball down the middle and one on the right.

Tatsu leapt to the right to dodge the first, then to the middle to dodge the second, then charged onward.

The Genryu slammed its claws down to the ground, causing fire to erupt from the ground at three different points, then two more, then another two the closer to the Genryu they came.

" **Water Pistol!"** Tatsu hit the Genryu with a Water Pistol to the face, then several water-enhanced slashes across its body "Sasuke!"

"Right!" Sasuke drew the Raijin-katana, coating it with lightning as his Sanda Sharingan flared into life " **Thunder Style: Lightning Perimeter!"** he formed 3 Thunder Clones, each one of them standing at a different point, and they all pointed their swords, causing lightning to rain down on the Genryu, knocking it out cold.

"Nice work Sasuke." then Tatsu leapt up and fired a Water Pistol, extinguishing the flames on the horn on the right of its head.

The Genryu launched multiple fireballs in the right, middle, left, right, middle, right, left, middle, right, middle and left areas, in that order.

' _I guess I can try this since the thing's on its last leg.'_ Tatsu formed several hand seals " **Water Style: Raging Waves!"** he fired a blast of water from his mouth.

The Genryu caused fire to erupt from 10 positions at once, as well as flames sweeping from one of its claws.

' _So it's going all out for this one, I guess I'd better not risk holding back now._ " **Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** he formed 10 clones ' _I remember the hand signs from when Kakashi fought Zabuza on the bridge, I guess now's as good a time as any.'_ each clone blitzed through several hand seals " **Water Style: Tsunami Dragon Barrage!"** each one breathed a medium-sized water dragon out of their mouth, all of them combining into one massive water dragon, slamming into the Genryu full force "Sasuke!"

"Right! **Chidori!"** Sasuke slammed a Chidori into the water dragon, electrifying it, causing the Genryu to howl in pain and fall to the ground.

' _Now!'_ Tatsu took that opportunity to blast the last flaming horn with a water pistol.

Now that every horn was put out, the Genryu let out an enraged howl, the shining scale glowing brightly.

' _There it is!'_ seeing the shining scale, Tatsu leapt up and slashed right through the shining scale, causing the Fire Genryu to collapse, and he caught the Fire Orb as he hit the ground "That's three down, two to go." then he checked his radio "Hey Yamato, we didn't find any Akatsuki members here. How about you?"

" _We didn't find them either."_

"I guess they must've left. Anyway, I found the volcanic vent. Just head down to that fork in the road and we'll meet you there." he looked back "Sasuke, you coming?"

"In a minute. I'll just recover my chakra and meet you there." Sasuke told him.

"Alright, but don't do anything stupid." and he took off.

Sasuke took a breath, then turned around "Alright, show yourself."

Then a figure appeared in the shadows "So you noticed."

"Who's there?"

"It's me… Sasuke." then the figure emerged from the shadows, revealed to be Itachi "You've gotten a bit taller."

"And you're the same as always, those cold eyes." Sasuke readily drew his Raijin katana.

"You're not going to attack me like you would, screaming with all your might?"

"You know absolutely nothing about me." Sasuke then sheathed his katana and turned around and began walking away "Remember this Itachi. I will get stronger, I will defeat you, but I refuse to become like you. When I defeat you, it will be on my terms." and with that, he walked out of the chamber.

Itachi stared for a moment, and when Sasuke was out of sight, he gave a small smile ' _I see… so that's how it is… Sasuke…'_

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After they made their way out of the volcano through the volcanic vent, Akari led the group to a shabby abandoned hallway "We must pass through here in order to reach the Wind Genryu."

"Doesn't look like there are any Mugonhei here." Tatsu noted "Still though, everybody stay on your toes." he led everyone forward, only to see the floor crumbling behind him "Okay guys, new plan. Run!" they all ran as fast as they could, only to reach the end and find that there was no floor there ' _Guess we've got no choice but to jump.'_ so he and the rest leapt down into the hole, just as the crumbling floor caught up with them.

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Tatsu looked around "It's pitch black… where the hell am I?"

"Tatsu." then Sasuke walked over.

"Sasuke, where are the others?"

"They're close by."

"I guess we all fell into the same area."

"It's too dark, I can't see very well and my chakra sensing isn't at 100% right now."

"Is someone there?" a voice called.

"Neji, is that you?" Tatsu rushed forward and found Neji lying against a wall "You alright?"

"I'm fine, but my legs are injured. There were enemies waiting where I landed."

"Let me see." Kin knelt down and touched his leg.

Neji winced.

"His leg is broken, I can't see well enough to treat him here. We'll have to get to somewhere with more light."

"If I could use my Byakugan then I'd be able to fight in the dark."

"Use this." Tatsu handed him the special equipment "You won't be at full capacity, but it's better than nothing. This equipment will allow you control your chakra, even inside Mount Koryu."

"Thank you."

Tatsu quickly slung Neji's arm over his shoulder "Alright Neji, use your Byakugan and locate the nearest exit."

"Right." Neji activated his Byakugan "It's a fair distance away, but I'll point it out once we get there."

"Alright."

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Several blind Mugonhei ambushes later, Neji pointed it out "There's air escaping through that wall, it must lead outside."

"On it." Tatsu formed a small Rasengan "Where?"

"In the middle."

"Got it." Tatsu blasted the wall apart using his Rasengan, leading them out of the cave and into the open desert "Perfect, now we're outside."

"Good…" then Neji collapsed.

"Neji, you alright?"

"I'll be fine, looks like you won't need my help from here on. I'll rest here so I don't slow you down."

"Actually, I'm gonna go it alone from this point. You guys hang back. Also, where do I go?"

"The wind in this area is caused by the Wind Genryu." Akari told him "If you head into the wind then it'll lead you straight to it."

"Got it." Tatsu bit his thumb and slammed his head into the ground " **Summoning Jutsu!"**

Then Ryu appeared " **What's up Tatsu? And why does my chakra feel so weird?"**

"We're in the Wind Region of Mount Koryu, I need to get over that gap in the road so I can get to the Wind Genryu."

" **Oh yeah I've heard of this place, the reason people can't use chakra properly is because the nature energy is all out of whack in here. But isn't there supposed to be some kind of device you're supposed to activate in order to open the door?"**

"Good point, just drop me up there."

" **Got it."** Ryu floated up slightly until he reached the top of a cliff.

Tatsu hopped off "Thanks."

" **Sure."** then Ryu vanished.

Tatsu leapt down into the cave and quickly dispatched several Mugonhei using the Fire Orb-enhanced Dragon Blade, then activated the device, opening the door, then made his way along the cliff across the pit, then through the door.

Sasuke stared for a moment, then watched as Kin treated Neji's wounds ' _I wonder if she'll say yes.'_

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The battle was about to begin on the other side.

Tatsu watched as the Wind Genryu soared above him ' _I've just gotta bide my time and use a jutsu that's effective against wind when its guard drops.'_

The Wind Genryu immediately dropped to the ground.

' _Well that was fast.'_ Tatsu formed several hand seals " **Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"** he launched a fireball at its feet.

The Genryu flew back into the air, circling the battle arena before lowering itself back down on the other side of the battlefield, then launched 5 simultaneous tornadoes.

Tatsu tried to outmaneuver them, but received a few cuts ' _Damn, the Genryu must be infusing these things with his chakra. I can't dodge or counter them, so I guess the only thing I can do is block.'_

The Genryu launched another barrage of tornadoes.

" **Earth Style: Mud Wall Jutsu!"** Tatsu summoned a Mud Wall and blocked the tornadoes very effectively, then drew the Dragon Blade and repeatedly cut the Genryu along its tail, enhanced by the Fire Orb.

The Genryu then retreated back slightly and inhaled a massive breath, preparing to breath out a cyclone.

" **Fire Style: Crimson Dragon!"** taking advantage of the intake of air, Tatsu unleashed a fire dragon, which then travelled up and burned the Genryu, causing it to howl in pain, revealing the shining scale in the process ' _There!'_ then he cut through the shining scale and caught the Wind Orb as it emerged.

The Genryu itself fell to the ground with a mighty thud.

Tatsu gracefully landed on the ground and stared at the Wind Orb in his hand, then inserted it into the blade, causing the dragon mark to glow green ' _Alright, four Dragon Orbs down and one to go. Next is the Lightning Region, so Lee's gotta be there. This idea wouldn't work under normal circumstances. I'd better head back and join the others.'_ and he ran off ' _Next stop, Lightning Region.'_

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Not long after the Leaf group departed from the area, Dragon showed up and stared at the unconscious form of the Wind Genryu ' _So they've already collected four of them, and from what I sense they've yet to encounter Orochimaru or any of the Akatsuki. But enough of that, I have my own business to take care of. For now I should start exploring from the middle of Mount Koryu, then I can figure out which direction he's gone. So then, I suppose the best choice from here would be to go to the volcano. But first…'_ he summoned a Shadow Clone "You know what you have to do. You head to the volcano, I'll head to the Lightning Region to rendezvous with them."

"Right." and the clone disappeared in a green flash.

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Tatsu stared up at the mountain that was the Lightning Region "Sasuke, has your Thunder Clone gotten any updates on Orochimaru's activity?"

"Let me check." Sasuke paused, then his eyes shot wide "My clone's been dissipated. Orochimaru and Kabuto must've found it and destroyed it."

"Do you know what the last thing it saw was?"

"Let's see… They were flying around the mountain on that giant eagle summon, so we weren't what they were looking for."

"Looks like we're going up, past the clouds."

"As far as I can see, the entrance is up there."

"Alright guys, let's move. Sasuke's my backup. Kin and Akari, you two stay behind but keep your distance so we're not all bunched up. Yamato and Neji, stay behind aways and watch the back for any surprise attacks from behind." and he rushed off, Sasuke right behind him and the rest of the group not far behind.

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Dragon landed at the top of the mountain, having driven off Deidara with ease after disarming his detonating clay ' _He shouldn't make his hand signs so obvious, unbeatable art my snow white ass. Now then, where are you Orochimaru.'_

"Well well Dragon, it's been a long time."

' _Typical.'_ Dragon turned his head back and saw Kabuto "If it isn't Kabuto, I haven't seen you since you saved Orochimaru after he failed to take Itachi's body. So what would someone like you want with someone like me?"

"You already know what Lord Orochimaru's objective is, I'm merely here to buy time."

"If you know as much about me as you say you do then you know that I have no intention of stopping him, but don't forget that if you two act against the Hidden Leaf then I will cut you both down without mercy."

"I'll be sure to remember that." then he formed a hand seal and disappeared.

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Sasuke ran ahead of the others into a secluded room, only to see Orochimaru standing in front of him, and his eyes shot wide ' _Orochimaru!_ Tatsu-" he looked back, but realized that there was nobody there ' _Where did-?'_ then he promptly hid himself behind a boulder ' _What the hell is going on?'_

"Come out Sasuke, I know you're there." Orochimaru coaxed.

' _No other choice, I'll have to take him on myself.'_ Sasuke slowly emerged from the boulder and cautiously approached Orochimaru ' _I'd better be careful, he'll probably try some underhanded tactic to get me to do whatever he wants._ Let me guess, you came here to capture me and take me back to whatever filthy hole you crawled out of?"

"Far from it Sasuke, I merely wished to talk to you, that's all."

"Give me one reason why I should believe you. I don't have time for any of your crap, I'm gonna go find my comrades."

He started walking away, but Orochimaru's voice stopped him "And what would you do if I were to take your comrades away?"

Sasuke stopped in his tracks, then turned "As long as I'm alive, you won't touch them. I'll do the village a favor and kill you here and now." he was about to reach for his Raijin sword, but suddenly found himself paralyzed ' _I can't… move! What's going on?'_

"I'm afraid our time here is short, so I'll make this quick." Orochimaru formed a hand seal, his neck extended, and he bit the paralyzed on the neck, then retracted his neck.

Sasuke felt a mark on his neck appear, along with a burning sensation "What did… you do… to me…?"

"I just gave you a little parting gift, that's all. In time, you will seek me out and desire my power. In the meantime, I look forward to seeing the power you already possess." then he melted into the ground and disappeared.

When he was gone, Sasuke fell to his knee, violently puked up blood, then collapsed, sweat dripping down his face and neck endlessly as he lost consciousness.

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Orochimaru emerged from the ground further up "It's been quite some time, hasn't it Dragon?"

Sure enough, at that moment, Dragon emerged from the darkness "It's been a few years Orochimaru, not since you failed to steal Itachi's body if I recall correctly." from within his mask, blue markings appeared around his eyes "If you've come to me yourself then that must mean you have a death wish, right?"

"Not quite." Orochimaru's tongue shot out at high speed.

Dragon leapt back onto a slab of rock that looked like a staircase.

Orochimaru's tongue wrapped around Dragon's arm and dragged him back down to the ground.

Dragon held his ground, pulled on the tongue and pulled Orochimaru towards him, then grabbed him by the neck, a dangerous look in his eye "I've given you this warning before Orochimaru and yet you refused to heed it 2 years ago. Your failed invasion is proof of that. Remember this, if you attack the village and more importantly my brother, I will hunt you down and kill you myself." he aimed a fist, but it missed.

"Is that all?" then Orochimaru was hit by a shockwave, sending him crashing into the wall, which then promptly shattered, leaving him dangling off the edge of the mountain.

' _You have to love Sage Mode._ If you survive this fall then I suggest you heed my warning next time, because if you don't then I won't be so nice." and with that, Dragon promptly dropped Orochimaru, leaving him to fall to the ground below ' _He'll survive that no doubt, but even he won't be able to escape without damage. He won't forget this. I've wasted too much time already, I'd better not forget why I'm here in the first place.'_ then he ran off, down the path.

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"Sasuke, wake up! Sasuke!" Kin was shaking him frantically.

Sasuke slowly opened his eyes, his voice weak and raspy, and full of pain "Kin… my neck…"

"Hold on a second." Tatsu checked it, then froze "I recognize this… it's the sign of Orochimaru's Curse Mark."

"What?" Kin's head snapped towards him "But how? Sasuke was only unconscious for a second and we were right behind him the whole time!"

"Orochimaru must've somehow incorporated his own being into a timetrap so he could mark you without risk of getting caught by us. Problem is, I have no idea how to deal with the effects of this thing." he got out his wireless headset "Yamato, Neji, we ran into some time-traps over here that Orochimaru set up for us. Anything to report on your end?"

" _No, nothing's- Wait, I think I see Orochimaru falling down the mountain."_ Neji told him.

"Even he won't survive a fall like that without damage, but all the same you two better come up."

" _Understood."_

"Alright, see you guys in a minute."

" _That voice… Tatsu, is that you?"_ asked a voice.

"Lee, is that you?"

" _Yes, it's me. Where are you guys?"_

"Inside the cave, and Sasuke just got hit with Orochimaru's Curse Mark."

"I can help with that." a new voice cut in.

Tatsu looked to see Dragon coming towards him from the direction they were headed "Oh, it's you again."

"I know this may seem out of nowhere, but I'm skilled enough in sealing jutsu to seal off the corrupting effects of that mark."

' _Should we trust him? We don't really know anything about him, but he has helped us out several times now. I guess we don't have a choice._ Alright, what do we need to do?"

"I just need a kunai."

"Here." Kin handed him one.

"Thank you." Dragon sat Sasuke up, cut his own arm down to just before his wrist, then drew several symbols around Sasuke and on his back and arms "Alright, this will be over after a moment. Are you ready?"

"Just… do it…" Sasuke rasped out.

"Okay." Dragon formed several hand seals " **Curse Sealing!"** he placed a hand on Sasuke's mark, causing him to scream in pain as the markings along the floor and his back made their way up his back until they formed around the mark in a complete circle.

Sasuke dropped to his hands and knees, panting heavily.

"There, now if the Curse Mark should start acting up then the seal will keep it in check. But do not forget, this seal is only as strong as you are and derives its power from the strength of your will. Should that will ever weaken, should you ever begin to doubt yourself, the curse will be unleashed in all of its fury and the pain will likely kill you."

Sasuke then promptly dropped to the ground, unconscious.

"Too tired to even argue, that never gets old."

Kin knelt down beside Sasuke "Will he be alright?"

"With enough rest he will be fine, a normal person would take at least a week but he should be up and about after a few hours."

Kin gently embraced Sasuke's unconscious form "Thank you."

"You're welcome. Now then, I'll go and pick up your comrades, then we'll join you further up ahead." and he disappeared in a green flash.

Tatsu stared intently ' _That jutsu… that was the Fourth Hokage's Flying Raijin Jutsu. Whoever this guy is, he definitely isn't anyone to mess with._ Alright, let's move."

" _Tatsu? Tatsu! TATSU!"_

"Sorry Lee, forgot you were on the line."

" _...Anyway, I got separated from Dosu and Neji awhile ago, and I've been tuning in wirelessly from time to time ever since in hopes they'd hear me and we'd be able to rendezvous."_

"What's your location?"

" _I'm fighting Mugonhei inside the clouds near where I exited the caves, just keep going through and you should find me."_

"We'll be right there, don't push yourself too hard."

" _Right."_ then the connection shut off.

"So should we go now or wait for Dragon to show up?"

Then Dragon showed up in a green flash with Yamato and Neji "Alright, I've done what I needed to do. From here on out, you're on your own. I'll be heading over to that volcano, I think that's the Fire Region, and I'll be tracking down the Akatsuki. Bye." and he disappeared in a green flash.

"So what'd we miss?" asked Yamato.

"Short version, Sasuke got marked by a time-trap Orochimaru set up." Tatsu told him "Yamato, you stay back with Kin and look over Sasuke, then come and meet up with use once he's come to. Neji, stay behind me and guard Akari while we go rendezvous with Lee."

Neji nodded "Right. Akari, please stay behind me."

"Okay, let's move." and Tatsu took off, Neji and Akari right behind him.

Kin just gripped Sasuke's hand tightly ' _Sasuke…'_

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Dragon appeared about halfway through the volcano, and his Shadow Clone dispersed ' _That went well, by placing a Flying Raijin mark on my Shadow Clone I was able to use it to appear here instantaneously. Still though, I'd better focus on tracking down Itachi.'_ he paused and tried to sense out Itachi's chakra ' _Alright, there are two of them. One's definitely Itachi so the other must be Kisame, I know he won't interfere so that'll work. The only question is, will I have to fight one of the Genryu?'_

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Tatsu raced out of the cave and saw Lee punching out a Mugonhei "Hey Lee, you doing okay?"

"Just fine, I can keep this up forever." Lee waltzed over to him and easily punched out a Mugonhei behind him without looking back "How are the others doing? I heard Sasuke was marked by Orochimaru, so that's another problem to deal with, not to mention almost all of you would have a hard time since you can't use chakra well here."

"Well you're an expert in taijutsu and I'm not too bad either, so it makes sense why Dosu and Neji had a hard time but you didn't. Even so, once I get through with the plan I have you'll still need this special equipment."

"What do you mean?"

"Hold on a second. Neji, get out here!"

Neji came out, with Akari right behind him "So this plan requires me?"

"It requires my Tenseigan chakra and a Gentle Fist user. Okay first, Lee, stand right here."

"Alright." Lee did so.

"Neji, stand right in front of him with two fingers extended out and your Byakugan active."

"Very well." Neji extended two fingers and activated his Byakugan.

"Now for my part." Tatsu placed a hand on Neji's back and his Tenseigan flared into life, before it quickly disappeared, and cyan-coloured chakra began pouring into Neji "Now!"

Neji thrusted two fingers into Lee's chest, causing it to glow, before it suddenly died down.

Lee froze, then blinked "I feel different."

"You should." Tatsu told him "I basically unlocked your chakra."

"What?"

"See, I've been going over some of your medical charts, having Ino as Tsunade's apprentice really helps in that regard, and I realized that the mean reason you couldn't access your chakra aside from the Eight Gates was because your central chakra point located at your heart was blocked off since your birth. I figured that with a powerful enough and precise enough Gentle Fist strike, it could be unlocked. Only problem is, it takes so much power that not even the head of the Hyuuga clan Hiashi can do it. Neji's second only to him so I figured that if I flood him with enough Tenseigan chakra, it could work."

"So this could've been the solution all along?"

"No, the environmental effects of Mount Koryu helped a ton in that regard too. If it wasn't for that then this wouldn't have worked."

"So you're saying… I can use ninjutsu now?"

"To an extent, you can really only use Shadow Clones and incorporate elemental chakra into your taijutsu. Put on the equipment and try it out."

Lee took a moment to try on the equipment "So I can use my chakra here?"

"To an extent, maybe around 70%." then he looked around and saw several Mugonhei "We've got incoming."

"I'll take care of this." Lee stepped forward and took out a gold dragon scroll "I found this a little while ago, I think you might be able to use it."

Tatsu accepted the scroll "What is it?"

Akari let out a gasp "That's the Dragon Orb Awakening scroll!"

"Meaning?"

"It awakens the true power of the properties within each Dragon Orb."

"Cool." he placed the scroll on the blade, and it disappeared ' _It feel like the sword's power just shot up._ So then, how are we supposed to get through these clouds?"

"Normally the wind from the Wind Genryu would dissipate the cloud cover."

' _Should I try this Orb Awakening now? No, save that for the Genryu._ Lee, you're up."

"On it." Lee stepped forward and spun his leg around like a tornado, actually generating one and sucking the surrounding Mugonhei into the rotation " **Wind Style: Leaf Whirlwind!"** he then kicked the life out of each of them, leaving them to dissipate "I feel so much more powerful now. This is amazing!"

"Let's go. I'm getting the last Dragon Orb from the Lighting Genryu and you're my backup for this one. Akari, any advice?"

"When you battle the Lightning Genryu, it will try to hide amidst the fog and clouds but you will be able to see it even amongst them if you look close enough." Akari told him.

"Thank you. Alright Lee, let's move." and he took off into the mist, with Lee following him.

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Dragon stared at the Genryu hall in front of him ' _So he's up ahead, and there's definitely two of them. Itachi is definitely there no doubt about it, so I don't have to worry about Kisame interfering. Itachi…'_ then he made his way inside.

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After fighting through countless Mugonhei and activating the device that opened the door, with Lee not far behind him, Tatsu found himself confronting the Lightning Genryu ' _The clouds are thick, but like Akari said I can still kind of see them.'_

The Lighting Genryu raised the horn on its nose, and a circle of lightning generated around him for a few seconds ' _Those blasts of lightning are pretty powerful, I'd better avoid getting hit or I'd be fried.'_

The Lightning Genryu fired a large ball of lightning from its nose.

Tatsu tried to push it back with the Dragon Blade, but failed and got shocked by it, then sent tumbling back.

Then the Genryu disappeared into the fog, and several blasts of lightning began zigzagging down from above him, first horizontally, then vertically, then circled around him.

' _Like Akari said, the Genryu are powerful but their attack patterns are seriously linear._ Lee, see if you can clear away this fog so I can track him down!"

"I can do more than that! **Wind Style: Severe Leaf Hurricane!"** with a wind-enhanced Severe Leaf Hurricane, Lee not only cleared away the fog, but also sent the Genryu crashing to the ground with a mighty kick to the face.

' _Now's my chance!'_ Tatsu formed a Shadow Clone "Let's do it." he formed the basic Rasengan, and the clone placed both hands above it, resulting in the Rasengan changing shape, turning a bluish-white, and giving out a high-pitched whirring sound ' _Perfect! Thanks to Sasuke's Thunder Clone tip earlier I figured it out. It took two of me to produce the original Rasengan at first, me to control the chakra emission and the clone for the change in form. I realized that I was gonna need another set of hands if I was gonna make this work.'_ then he turned his attention back up to the Lightning Genryu "Alright big guy, get a load of my brand new perfected jutsu! **Wind Style: Rasengan!"** he slammed the perfected Rasengan into its torso.

The Genryu howled in pain, the shining scale glowing brightly.

' _There it is!'_ seeing the change, Tatsu leapt up and slashed through the shining scale, then caught the Lightning Orb as it fell "Alright, that's all five Dragon Orbs. I guess that means now we can pass through all the elemental barriers."

"Elemental barriers?" asked Lee.

"I'll tell you on the way."

"Tatsu!" then Neji and Akari showed up "There's something nearby, a figure in a black cloak with clouds on it."

"Lee, you know what this means."

Lee nodded "The Akatsuki, they're nearby. Stay on guard. Tatsu."

"I know, you can handle this one."

"Thanks."

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Dragon was quick to dodge the fireballs from an enraged Fire Genryu, effectively cutting its shining scale and knocking it out ' _Now then, where are you Itachi?'_

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Lee paused ' _They're here, I've gotta wait and look for a sign that gives away the location of my enemy.'_ he paused, the air thick ' _I hear chewing, crawling… a footstep!'_ he blitzed over and punched his target in the face, sending him to the ground ' _Got him!'_

The target got up, revealing himself as Deidara, and wiped the blood from his face "How'd you know where I was? But… Tobi!"

"Leave it to me!" Tobi called from within the fog.

"So looks like I'm dealing with a taijutsu user. Oh well, I've just gotta keep my distance and I'll be fine."

' _They've got the advantages of setting up traps and visibility.'_ Lee noted ' _I've got an idea, but it'll require some time._ **First Gate: Gate of Opening: Open!"** he opened the first gate, dodging several clay bombs " **Second Gate: Gate of Rest: Open!"** he opened the second gate " **Third Gate: Gate of Life: Open!"** he opened the third, his skin turning red, the shockwave destroying several clay bombs " **Fourth Gate: Gate of Pain: Open!"** he opened the fourth gate, the force of the shockwave sending Deidara back.

"Dammit!"

"Deidara!" Tobi cried.

"What is it?!"

"There are no more bombs!"

' _Dammit!'_

"Got you!" Lee blitzed forward, the groundbreaking from under him, and sent Deidara into the air with a single kick, sending out a shockwave, then formed a hand seal " **Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** he summoned 10 clones "You know what to do!" they all leapt into the air. One clone punched Deidara downwards, the second kicking him back up, then blitzing and kicking him all through the air.

' _Dammit, I can't move! Think Deidara, think!'_

"You're a tough one after taking all of those, but this will end it!" the original Lee appeared right above "One more and you're finished! **Fifth Gate: Gate of Closing: OPEN!"** he unleashed the fifth gate " **HIDDEN LOTUS!"** he barrelled a fierce barrage of punches into Deidara's gut, then ended it with one brutal kick to the gut, sending him crashing to the ground, which promptly broke apart underneath him ' _He can't still be able to move after that, at least I hope not because I don't have much left after that.'_ he returned to the ground and made his way over to Deidara's form, only to find that it was made of clay ' _He must've used a Substitution Jutsu right before he took that last hit.'_

"Nice try Bushy-Brow, but you're gonna have to do better than that if you wanna get the better of me!" Deidara flipped him off from atop his giant clay bird, and he and Tobi took off into the fog.

"Dammit, I let him get away."

"Let them go." Tatsu approached Lee and helped him to his feet "They're not our objective anyway, we'll get them next time so don't worry. Since we have all 5 Dragon Orbs, we should focus on our mission. For now, let's go pick up Dosu and head back to the Ritual Hall. I'll give you more details when we get there."

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Dragon stood in the hall, back turned to the unconscious Fire Genryu, when he sensed a familiar presence behind him and turned to face him "So you were here after all. It's been a long time… Itachi."

Sure enough, Itachi stood in front of the Fire Genryu "It has indeed Dragon, nearly 8 years if I recall."

"Not since the Uchiha Incident if I remember correctly."

"And your power is as great as ever, I should have expected as much from someone like you."

"Did you really have to control that Genryu with your Sharingan just to test me?"

"I had to make sure your skills haven't rusted since last we met."

"And you've seen what you need to?"

"I have. There's nothing more to discuss. Until we meet again Dragon." then he disappeared into a flock of crows.

"It seems that bit of business is finished." he turned to the door "If you're going to show yourself then now's the time."

Sure enough, Kisame emerged from behind the door "I guess Itachi finished what he came here to do."

"So it was you after all Kisame Hoshigaki, Monster of the Hidden Mist."

"You knew there was someone else here?"

"I sensed two different chakras aside from the Genryu, but knowing Itachi I'm sure he asked you to stand guard to ensure that he and I weren't disturbed."

"I'm glad you understand, though since I was bored while I was waiting I feel like playing now."

"If you insist then very well."

"Then allow me." Kisame formed several hand seals and placed a hand on the ground " **Water Style: Four Shark Shower!"** a large column of water rose into the air, then divided into four different water sharks.

' _An effective water style user I see.'_ Dragon took out four kunai with paper bombs attached and launched one at each of the water sharks, detonating them in explosions.

Kisame formed a hand seal, and the water raining down them formed then formed into several droplet-sized water sharks "As good as you might be, even you couldn't possibly dodge all of these." then he charged and brought down Shark Skin.

Dragon disappeared in a green flash right before the blade connected, then appeared behind him with his katana drawn.

"I stand corrected." Kisame swung Shark Skin behind him, forcing Dragon back.

Dragon rebounded and blocked another strike from Shark Skin with a kunai, then kicked the blade before blocking another strike.

"I've always wanted to see what you can do."

Dragon saw some of the bandages break off of Shark Skin and quickly broke away.

"Even Shark Skin is happy." Kisame formed several hand seals " **Water Style: Water Shark Bomb Jutsu!"** he shot out a water shark.

" **Fire Style: Crimson Dragon Jutsu!"** Dragon shot out a red fire dragon, clashing with Kisame's water shark and enveloping the area in mist. When it subsided, Dragon stood behind Kisame holding a kunai to his throat "It's over."

"With your sensory abilities you're able to sense me out and attack, even in the mist. Impressive. At least, that's what I'd normally say." then he dissolved into a puddle of water.

"So you saw through me and used a water clone."

Kisame appeared behind Dragon and held Shark Skin to his neck "It's been a long time since I've had to do this."

"I haven't had to do _this_ in a long time either." then he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"So you saw through me seeing through you and used a Shadow Clone?" he was quick to use his Shark Skin to block Dragon's katana.

Dragon quickly broke away "Damn, we've been here too long. Look."

Then the Fire Genryu regained consciousness and let out an enraged roar as it stomped on the ground, causing it to give way and for both Dragon and Kisame to fall into the hole below.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The entire Leaf group stood outside the Ritual Hall.

"Akari." Sasuke addressed her.

"Yes?" Akari looked up.

"Let me ask you one last time."

"Okay."

"Your request was to stop the destruction that your brother is causing right?"

"Yes."

"And if we're forced to defeat him in the process?"

"That's fine. I thought I could convince him when I saw him with you earlier, but he is no longer the Kuroma that I used to know."

"Don't give up Akari." Tatsu knelt down and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Tatsu…"

"Fighting might be inevitable, but there's no rule saying that when you fight someone has to die. I used to be alone too after my brother died, but there were people who helped me, guided me, believed in me, and that's why I'm here now. So I'm not going to defeat him Akari, no matter what happens I'm going to save your brother. After all, we won't know the outcome of the battle unless we try." then he stood in front of the others "Alright guys, let's go over the plan. Akari, please tell us how to undo the barrier in the back."

"Very well. When you go inside, there are five rooms along the halls. In each of those rooms, there is a device that removes the barrier. When they're all activated, the barrier in the back will be removed."

"How do you activate the devices?" asked Dosu.

"It's on the ground, so you just have to put something heavy on it."

"So they're like the devices we saw on the way here?" Tatsu guessed.

"Yes, but the main barrier won't break if the object on any switch is knocked off."

"So if whatever we put on it doesn't move there's no problem?" Lee guessed.

"There will be Mugonhei crawling all over the place, so it won't be easy." Tatsu noted "That means one of us should each take a room."

"And each one of us finishes off the Mugonhei in each room and defends the devices, right?"

"Exactly, now let's decide who stays behind in each room when we get there. Alright everyone, let's move." and he took off, with the group following.

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Room 1.

Tatsu unlocked the Earth room "Alright, who's first?"

"I'll do it." Dosu offered "I'm proficient in Earth-style jutsu so it only makes sense."

"Suit yourself." and he rushed out, leaving Dosu to defend it.

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Room 2.

Tatsu unlocked the Water room "Next."

"A room with low visibility, leave this one to me." Neji decided.

"Alright."

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Room 3.

Tatsu unlocked the Wind room "Next."

"I'll protect this room." Yamato told him.

"Good."

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Room 4.

Tatsu unlocked the Fire room "Next."

"Leave this one to me." Lee wasted no time in charging in to deal with the Mugonhei.

"...Yeah okay."

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Room 5.

Tatsu unlocked the Lightning Room "Who's got this one?"

Sasuke wasted no time in activating his Sanda Sharingan "I'll handle the last one, you go check on the barrier." and he charged in.

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With everyone in place, Tatsu went to the back and saw the barrier deactivate "Alright, how's everybody doing?"

" _We're on our way right now."_

"Good, because I'm gonna need all of you for backup." then he rushed inside, with everyone else following shortly.

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The group all confronted Kuroma in the Central Shrine.

"So you've gotten all the Dragon Orbs from all the Genryu." Kuroma noted.

Tatsu stepped forward "Kuroma, I'll say it one more time. Stop this, you're not making anyone happy by doing this."

"Be quiet, I'm not obligated to make anyone happy. Everything I've ever done for people, it's all been thrown back at me as insults, prejudice and discrimination. I don't _need_ a world where anyone else lives."

"Kuroma… please brother…" Akari pleaded.

"Akari…"

"I loved you because you said that no matter what we'd always persevere. That's why I was able to handle it all."

"I see… Akari…"

"Brother…"

"A world where we are forced to persevere will soon be gone, so come with me."

"N-No… that's not what I'm trying to say… why don't you understand?"

"I understand perfectly."

Tatsu stepped forward and drew the Dragon Blade "If this is how you're going to be, I have no choice but to stop you."

"To stop me, you must defeat me. But I am already a Light Dragon, can you withstand my powers?"

"Are you saying you already have the power to destroy the world?"

"Tatsu Kamikaze, warrior of the Dragonseed, you and your allies will soon learn just how powerful I have become!" he unleashed a blast of lightning.

Tatsu dodged, and everyone else retreated back.

"I will destroy the world, and everything in it."

"There's no way I'm going to let that happen!" Tatsu charged in.

Kuroma unleashed a blast of wind.

' _Come on… come on…!'_ Tatsu braced himself and grabbed Kuroma, then slashed him down the middle.

Kuroma got up, sending out a blast of dark chakra that nearly knocked Tatsu off his feet, then used his Earth Genryu power to cause an earthquake.

Tatsu quickly rebounded and slashed at him with the Dragon Blade.

Kuroma dodged and unleashed a large tsunami wave.

Tatsu dodged, then noticed the roof shaking "The hell?" he looked up, only to see Dragon and Kisame fall through "Oh for f*ck's sake."

"Hi." Dragon waved "See we were fighting in the volcano, the fire dragon woke up and broke the ground between us, we spent about 10 minutes falling and now we're here."

"And him?"

"I was the one he was fighting." Kisame told him dryly "I'm guessing I can't get out of here alive unless we get past you?"

"Nope, unless you get past that guy." Tatsu pointed at Kuroma.

"What's his story?"

"Short version, he's absorbed the power of all 5 Genryu and now he claims to be something called the Light Dragon. So far his claims turn out true. So you wanna help us or should we just kill you here and now?"

"You really think I'd team up with you?"

"Pretty much yeah."

"And do tell, what makes you think I won't stick a knife in your back when you're not looking?"

"Because if you kill us then Kuroma will kill you, your survival rides on this teamwork just as much as ours. We'll watch our backs after this but not before, I'm smart enough to know that."

"...You know kid, you just might make it in this world after all. Alright, what's the plan?"

"The Dragon Blade I carry is the only thing that can harm Genryu but he uses elemental attacks, see if you and Dragon and the rest can counter them."

"Right."

Then Kuroma addressed them "Are you two also with this group, or have you foolishly come in an attempt to steal my power?"

"I'm actually under no obligation to tell you."

"Very well, you will perish either way so it really doesn't matter."

"Got you!" Tatsu blitzed in front of him and slashed with the Dragon Blade.

In a surprising move, Kuroma stopped the blade with one hand and looked at Tatsu with nothing but disdain "I grow tired of you constantly wasting my time." he sent Kisame back with a blast of wind and formed a hand seal " **Sealing Jutsu: Black Aura!"** he held out his hand, engulfing Tatsu in a black aura, then launched a fireball and blast of lightning at him simultaneously, sending him tumbling back with clear burns.

"This is bad." Sasuke noted "Guys, we've gotta help Tatsu or he'll lose. Kin, stay with Akari. Let's go!" and they all charged.

Kuroma let out an arrogant laugh "You're all like a bunch of crows, a group of weaklings pretending to be strong!" he sent out a shockwave of black chakra "Pathetic." he paused and looked at Sasuke, then grabbed him by the shirt "You carry the spirit of the thunder, Raijin. Such a shame, I probably would've liked to spare you." he drew a kunai and slashed Sasuke down the middle of his chest, then dropped him and walked away, swatting away Dosu and Kisame like flies in the process.

"Sasuke!" Kin was by his side in an instant, trying to heal him ' _You'll be alright Sasuke, just hang in there.'_

"Dammit!" Lee swore "He's so much more powerful than us. _At this rate, not even the 6th or 7th gate would be able to defeat him. Should I use the Gate of Death? It would kill me, but I'm to protect my comrades then I must-'_ he was cut off by a sudden surge of chakra.

Kuroma looked and saw Tatsu clad in his Tenseigan Chakra Mode, eyes white and blank "What is this? _Even with this power, he's still unconscious._ You appear stronger, but it's meaningless against the Light Dragon." he unleashed a linear-patterned blast of lightning.

Tatsu dodged all of the lightning with ease and slashed at Kuroma with a large claw made entirely of chakra.

Taken by surprise, Kuroma barely dodged it and slammed a hand on the ground, causing fire to erupt.

Tatsu merely sidestepped the attack and hit Kuroma with a blast of cyan chakra, sending him tumbling back.

Kuroma stood and spat out some blood "Wh-What is this power…? How could this be? It surpasses even the Light Dragon's?! I won't… I won't accept this!" he unleashed a column of erupting fire with one hand and a blast of wind with his other hand.

Tatsu charged through both attacks, receiving minor burns, and slashed Kuroma across the chest with a chakra claw.

Kuroma let out a scream of pain as he was sent tumbling back.

Tatsu appeared above him, intending to finish him off.

"Brother!" Akari cried out.

Tatsu stopped, then turned to her instead.

Lee appeared in front of him "Stop it Lee, that's enough."

Tatsu slowly advanced forward.

"If you're not going to stop then I'll have to snap you out of it." Lee got into a combat stance.

Tatsu lunged forward.

But before Lee could do it, Kisame shredded Tatsu's chest with Shark Skin, causing him to collapse to the ground "That oughta… do it… Sorry kid… but if you go down… we'll all go down…" then he coughed up blood and passed out.

Tatsu's pupils returned, and he blinked, then collapsed, only to see someone catch him "Wha-?"

"I've got you." Lee helped Tatsu to his feet "You had me worried there for a minute."

"Sorry… Akari… Lee…"

"What was that anyway?"

"You remember the drawback of using the Tenseigan too much?"

"Absolute power corrupts absolutely."

"Exactly. While I was unconscious, the negative energy building up from my use of the Tenseigan took over my body and forced me to go out of control. But on the bright side, it's over now…"

"Yeah…"

Despite being wounded, Kuroma limped towards the center of the room "The power… of the Light Dragon… was incomplete…"

"Brother… stop… If you fight anymore, you'll…" Akari quickly rushed over to Kuroma and pushed him out of the way "Please stop, you've done enough brother." then she was encased in a white light, and she disappeared.

"What the hell is going on?" Tatsu wondered "Akari… she just disappeared…?"

Kuroma appeared horrified "What…?! How… How could this be?"

"What happened?"

Kuroma fell to his knees "This can't be… This is all my fault… Akari…"

"What happened? Kuroma, where's Akari?"

"Akari… and the Light Dragon…"

"What are you talking about?"

Kuroma got to his feet, but fumbled.

Tatsu helped him up "Easy big guy, where're you going?"

"I must go… to the Hall of the Light Dragon… Akari…"

"The Hall of the Light Dragon right? Can you stand?"

"You…"

"I don't know what's going on, but you're trying to save Akari right?"

"Yes…"

"Then I'll help you."

"Tatsu, I'm coming with you." Lee told him.

"Thanks Lee, I'm glad I can always count on you." he turned to Dragon "I don't suppose you'd be willing to come to?"

"I would, but someone has to keep an eye on him." Dragon pointed to Kisame "That, and I should stay here to fend off any Mugonhei while the future wife of the Uchiha there heals as many as she can."

"Thank you. Kuroma, which way?"

"Follow me." Kuroma limped off, with Tatsu and Lee supporting him.

Dragon stared for a moment in the direction they left in ' _Good luck… brother…'_

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Tatsu wasn't amused with the Mugonhei they encountered "Really? More of these guys?"

"They're the soldiers protecting the awakening of the Light Dragon." Kuroma explained.

"The awakening of the Light Dragon?" Lee punched and kicked two Mugonhei in between every word "Didn't you say you already received the power of the Light Dragon?"

"I didn't receive all of it, I only got as much as a human could hold."

"So then… You know what, forget it." Lee stood in front of the Genryu "I'll stop these things, you two go and I'll join you when I'm finished."

"Thanks Lee, I owe you." Tatsu slung Kuroma's arm over his shoulder, and he carried him through the Genryu door.

Lee waited until they were gone, then turned to the Mugonhei "Sorry guys, but it ends for all of you here."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Tatsu stared at the being in front of him "A Genryu? I don't get it, where's Akari?"

"This… This wasn't supposed to happen…" Kuroma mumbled.

In front of them stood a massive white Genryu with four balls of light hovering above it, which then promptly fired blasts of light towards them, hitting Kuroma and leaving him to crash to the ground.

"Kuroma!" Tatsu knelt down beside him "You alright big guy? Dammit, where the hell are you Akari?"

"Akari… Akari…" Kuroma murmured.

"Hey… is that…?"

"I'm sorry, Akari… What monster have I resurrected…?"

"Come on Kuroma, answer my question. What is that thing? Where's Akari?"

"That's the Light Dragon's true form… That's Akari…"

"Wh-What?" Tatsu stared at the Light Dragon for a moment "How can we save her? There has to be something we can do."

"No… there's nothing we can do now… just look at it… Akari's will was consumed by the Light Dragon… Akari is no longer with us…"

"Kuroma…"

"I have persevered through whatever persecution the world threw at me… as long as I had Akari, I was fine…"

Tatsu's eyes softened.

"Akari's smile… that was the only thing that kept me going… But just because of our horns, Akari was hated. People would throw stones… I decided to protect Akari… I kept travelling, hoping to find somewhere we could lead normal lives… But it was a fantasy, no place like that existed… No place accepted us, not a single person…"

"That's why you decided to destroy the world…"

"And this is the result… without Akari, I have no reason to live…"

"Tell me something Kuroma… Being hated by everyone sucks, doesn't it? It must be lonely and painful, make you wonder why you were even born right? But if you don't give up, you'll meet true friends who will acknowledge you."

"Tatsu…"

"Look, I'm not going to lie or give you a whole shpeel saying I know how you feel, but I know someone who does. Naruto Uzumaki, my closest friend. He's got a monster inside of him too… the Nine-Tailed Fox. Because of that, almost every single person in our village hate him… I acknowledged him first, and he started to grow little by little. And when he kept going with all of his strength, other people acknowledged him too. The numbers slowly grew, and before he knew it he had a ton of friends, even friends from other villages. Hell, he's got a bridged named after him. Technically after our entire squad, but that's not the point. My point here is that no matter what he faced he never gave up, and neither will I." he stood and inserted the Wind Orb into the handle of the Dragon Blade "That's why I'll never give up either, I promise I'll save Akari no matter what it takes.

 _What the Dragon Blade separates are light, people, and power…_ a voice rang through the air.

"What the hell was that?"

"It's an old song that the Tatsushiro clan has passed down through generations." Kuroma told him "That Dragon Blade you have…"

"Yeah, I thought so too… It's the only thing that can save Akari now." he turned his attention back to the Light Dragon "Don't worry Akari, I'm coming to save you!" and he charged into the fray.

The Light Dragon was engulfed in a white light, and when it subsided the markings on it had turned from white to red.

' _So it's take on a fire mode? Maybe I have to use the Fire Orb to counterbalance the fire form it's using.'_ he swapped out the Wind Orb for the Fire Orb and quickly slashed away with the blade.

The Light Dragon merely flexed its jaw and swatted Tatsu aside.

Tatsu landed on one of the side paths and wiped the blood from its jaw ' _That burned, I guess I shouldn't be surprised since it's using the fire power.'_ then he got hit with a beam of light, injuring his shoulder ' _Dammit, those things hurt like a bitch. I can't take too many hits like that or I'm done for.'_ he looked at the wings ' _Maybe if I can slash at the tendons in the wings hard enough I'd be able to injure it.'_

The Light Dragon promptly switched to its Lightning form.

' _So it's trying to outpace and nullify my attacks by constantly changing its form and elemental nature.'_ Tatsu promptly switched to the Lightning Orb ' _I thought about using the Wind Orb instead, but that would only destroy the Lightning Orb without leaving me anything to counter the Earth Orb later. So bottom line, same form, same orb.'_ he repeatedly slashed at the wings, aiming for the tendons ' _Dammit… these things have pretty thick skin so reaching the tendons will be harder than I thought.'_ he placed both hands on the blade ' _First rule of swordsmanship, a sword's strike becomes exponentially more powerful if you use two hands instead of one. Thank you Hayate-sensei, this battle is for you!'_ then he charged, and with one powerful slash, cut through every tendon on the Light Dragon's left wing.

The Light Dragon howled in pain as one of the horns shattered, and the Lightning Orb cracked apart and turned to dust.

' _The Orb… It's nullifying the elements possessed by the Light Dragon! So that's how it works, I should've seen it sooner!'_

The Light Dragon ducked down below the pathway, then rose back up in its Water form and slammed down its claw, several waves crashing down on the pathways and water bullets raining down from the balls of light above.

Tatsu attempted to dodge them, only for a few of them to pierce his skin with ease, drawing lots of blood ' _Dammit, those hurt even more than the fire blasts did.'_

Then the Light Dragon entered its Wind form.

' _Wind.'_ Tatsu switched out the Water Orb for the Wind Orb ' _Good thing I'm mainly proficient in wind chakra so I can just use the Dragon Blade to amplify that.'_ he formed a hand seal and summoned two Shadow Clones " **Wind Style: Tornado Dragon Dance!"** using the form of the Crescent Moon Dance, Tatsu and his two clones charged in, swords drawn.

The Light Dragon destroyed one clone with its claw, and the balls of light destroyed another.

The original Tatsu raised the wind-enhanced Dragon Blade and slashed clean through the tendons on one of the wings.

The Light Dragon howled in pain as another horn disappeared.

Tatsu saw the Wind Orb in the handle of the Dragon Blade shatter ' _That's two down, three to go.'_

The Light Dragon fell to the ground, destroying one of the pathways along the battlefield in the process.

' _Okay like that doesn't limit my movement space at all.'_

The Light Dragon rose back up in its Fire form once again, shooting out balls of fire in every direction and from the balls above him.

Tatsu found his entire right side burned rather badly, but he managed to cut about half of the tendons on one wing.

The Light Dragon let out a howl of pain and swatted him back to the center platform.

' _Gotta… keep moving…'_ despite feeling the pain from his burns, Tatsu mustered up enough strength to charge forward and slash the remaining tendons on the wing.

The Light Dragon howled in pain as yet another horn disappeared, and the Fire Orb shattered.

' _Three down.'_

The Light Dragon promptly entered its Water form and sent out several water bullets, one of them piercing Tatsu's right shoulder.

' _Dammit… If my arm wasn't dead before, it is now.'_ now that he only had one good arm to wield the Dragon Blade, Tatsu brace himself more tense than ever as he threw the sword into the air, whipped out the Water Orb and slammed it into the handle ring, then slashed through the wing's tendons once again.

The Light Dragon howled in pain as the fourth horn disappeared, and the Water Orb shattered, and it fell.

' _The last Dragon Orb, I'll have to make this one count.'_

The Light Dragon slammed its claws on the ground repeatedly, causing boulders to fall.

Tatsu found his leg badly crushed by one of them ' _Dammit! No calm down Tatsu, you've gotta focus…'_ he channeled chakra into his leg ' _Concentrate… focus… NOW!'_ he used every ounce of strength he'd stored in his leg and pushed himself into the air, and with every ounce of his strength, slashed the Light Dragon straight across the face, then collapsed to the ground ' _I hope that did it… that was about all I had left…'_

The Light Dragon fell, then rose back up in its basic Light form, the balls of light blasting Tatsu's good arm and good leg, leaving him immobile.

' _Dammit…'_ he looked and saw the Dragon Blade glowing ' _Spirit of the Dragon Blade… if you can hear me then please… Lend me your strength… I don't have enough power on my own… please, help me protect them… please…'_ his left arm inched upwards bit by bit, and slowly but surely a Rasengan formed in his palm ' _Not enough… power… please… lend me all of your strength…'_ the high pitched whirring came into life, taking on a dragon-like aura ' _Thank you… now to end this…'_ before he even realized it, he was on his feet ' _I've only got one shot at this, so I've gotta make it count…'_

The Light Dragon let out a primal roar as it unleashed a blast from its mouth, as well as every ball of light joining in the attack simultaneously.

With an invisible force pushing him upwards, Tatsu leapt into the air, the dragon-powered Rasengan growing bigger "This is the end! **Wind Style: Dragon Rasengan!"** and with that, he slammed the Rasengan down into the Light Dragon's shining scale, then the actual Dragon Blade itself, resulting in a blinding white light engulfing the area.

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A white void.

That was all Tatsu could see, before Akari came into his line of vision "Akari…"

There she sat, huddle in a ball, clutching her knees "Thank you, Tatsu…"

"You're welcome…"

"I was watching… I heard everything… You spoke with my brother…"

"Yeah…"

"He wasn't hated… It was me he was talking about… My brother never had any trouble with the people around him…"

"I see…"

"I never did anything by myself, I was just fine being protected my Kuroma. I put on a facade… I was pretending to endure…"

"Akari…"

"I'm so glad I met you Tatsu, and everyone else…" tears began streaming down her face.

"I'm glad I met you too Akari…"

"I never knew you could cry from happiness…"

"Yeah…"

"My heart feels so warm…"

"I know…" Tatsu put a hand on her shoulder "Come on, let's go back…"

" **Wait."** a voice thundered, and the 5 Genryu, as well as the Light Dragon, appeared before both them " **Tatsu Kamikaze, we have seen your heart and have confirmed that you are indeed the rightful heir to the Dragon Blade. Now and forever, our power is your power."** they all held out a claw.

Tatsu held up his own hand "Thank you. Tell me, what are you names."

" **I am Jishin."** said the Earth Genryu.

" **I am Kaiyo."** said the Water Genryu.

" **I am Kaen."** said the Fire Genryu.

" **I am Tatsumaki."** said the Wind Genryu.

" **I am Sanda."** said the Lightning Genryu.

" **And I am Hikari."** said the Light Dragon.

" **From now on, we will lend you our strength."** and with that, they channeled all of their power into Tatsu, then everything was enveloped in darkness.

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"Tatsu! Tatsu!"

' _Is that Sasuke's voice?'_

Sasuke froze "He stopped breathing."

Lee grinned mischievously "I've got it. Don't worry guys, I'll give him mouth-to-mouth!"

"HELL NO!" Tatsu bolted upright "Anything but that!"

"See? I told you that would work."

"Wait…" Tatsu looked around and saw everyone, from Sasuke and Lee to Dragon and Kisame, were all fully healed "Hang on, why's everyone…?"

"This light suddenly surrounded us, and then our wounds were all healed."

"Well that would explain why I feel fine now too." then he shot a look at Kisame "And you haven't bailed yet?"

Kisame shrugged "You saved my skin, I'm just repaying the debt. Heard what happened by the way, not bad kid."

Tatsu knew that was close to "Good job" as he would get "Thanks, I think. So where are…?"

"Right here." Kuroma got his attention, with Akari right by his side, though they looked rather different somehow "You have my utmost gratitude Tatsu Kamikaze, thank you."

"Kuroma… Wait, your horns are gone. Akari's too?"

Kuroma checked and realized he was right "Indeed, they're gone…"

"And the markings on your face are gone too."

"Perhaps the Light Dragon has taken everything, and returned to Heaven."

"Not everything." Tatsu held up the Dragon Blade "They gave me their power when I saved Akari, now their strength lives on in me." then he felt shaking "Oh crap…"

"Mount Koryu is starting to crumble!"

"Let's move people!" and Tatsu and the entire party made their way out.

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Tatsu stopped the group in front of the door to the central shrine "The device to open the barrier is on the outside."

"I can't open it since I don't have the Dragon's power anymore." Kuroma admitted.

"The shaking is getting harder, this is bad." Yamato muttered "Are we done for?"

"What're you saying Yamato? You never know until you try!" Tatsu formed a Rasengan ' _I know I've been pushing all of you guys pretty hard today, but please lend me your power just one last time._ **Wind Style: Genryu Rasengan!"** he slammed the Genryu-powered Rasengan straight into the door, shattering it and allowing them to pass through.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Soon enough, everyone was outside, staring at the remains of Mount Koryu.

"That was close." Lee muttered.

"That jutsu you used Tatsu, what was it exactly?" Dosu asked.

Tatsu smiled and held up the Dragon Blade "That was a Rasengan influenced by the powers of the Genryu. Now their power lives within me."

"So it's finally all over…" Akari murmured.

"Looks like it. Well then guys, let's return to the village. We still have to report the mission's outcome."

"Aren't you going to capture me?" asked Kuroma "I've done terrible things to the Leaf Village and the others."

"The mission was simply to stop what you were trying to do, capturing you was never our objective to begin with. Besides, if we wanted to capture you then you'd be captured before you could even blink."

"But still…"

"That, and what would Akari do without you?"

"Oh… but…"

"It's alright, really. Tell me something Kuroma, Akari's your reason for living isn't she?"

"Yes… she's my only sister…"

"Then you two should be together, plain and simple."

"...Yes."

"Well there you go."

Then Akari stepped forward "Thank you, all of you, for everything you've done for us. I'll go to the village to formally thank you."

"Be sure to come and visit once things have settled down."

"I will Tatsu, thank you very much."

"Anytime. Sasuke."

"On it." Sasuke summoned Garada and had him send Akari and Kuroma on their way.

"Okay, as sweet as this has been, are you gonna capture me or not?" Kisame finally lost his patience.

Tatsu shrugged "No need, you helped us out twice and by letting you go we'll be even. Besides, that way Lee can get his shot in at you later."

"Fair enough. I wasn't looking for any trouble anyway." then he suddenly turned into water and disappeared.

"He will be later though."

"Are you sure it was wise to let him get away?" asked Dosu "Whatever this Akatsuki is, we might've done a major blow to them by taking him in."

"Maybe, but he helped us so it's only right that we repay him. We'll get him next time, don't worry."

Kin turned to Sasuke "Hey Sasuke?"

"What's up?" asked Sasuke.

"Back in the volcano, you said you had something you wanted to ask me."

' _Shit, I was hoping she'd forget.'_ Sasuke was cursing himself for somewhat failing to suppress his blush "Well, you see… I was kind of wondering… would you maybe want to… you know… move in with me? I understand if you don't want to… no rush or anything, but… yeah…" he cursed his nervous stuttering ' _Dammit I'm an Uchiha, and Uchihas don't stutter!'_

Kin looked at him and smiled ' _He's always so adorable when he gets nervous like that._ I'd love to Sasuke." she pecked him on the cheek.

And cue Sasuke dissolving into a pile of goo.

 **A/N:**

 **Part of the revisions I'm doing to my Naruto series is taking the two part opener to my Shippuden fic and merging them into one long chapter. I know that the game Dragon Blade Chronicles receives a decent amount of hate from the fandom, and looking back I can understand some of the reasons why, but I personally thought that it was pretty good, and I thought that if it was made canon then it could have a lot of potential for the story. And adding onto that point, unlike in the game Tatsu keeps the Dragon Blade and the Genryu powers, which will come into play later on.**

 **I know the Wind Region came after the Ritual Hall, but I thought it only made sense to go to the Fire Region next since they already have the Water Orb, then have the Wind Region come next since they'll have the Fire Orb.**

 **In case I didn't point this out before, Dragon is there in place of the Sasuke quest in the game, and he'll be making his way to the Fire Region of Mount Koryu last in order to meet up with Itachi. And yes Dragon has Sage Mode, and I'm pretty sure you guys still don't know who he is, but if you wanna guess in your reviews I'd really appreciate it.**

 **Lee can now use his chakra, basically Shadow Clones that he can incorporate into his Hidden Lotus, thereby perfecting it, thanks to Tatsu's abilities combined with the unique environment of Mount Koryu.**

 **I know you guys are probably pissed that I had Orochimaru mark Sasuke after saying that Sasuke wouldn't leave the village, but after spending some time brainstorming I decided that it had to be done for the sake of Taka. I know for a while it wouldn't be consequential, but think about how they saved Sasuke during the war, not to mention the Five Kage so they could join the battle. And don't worry about Sasuke going insane over revenge when he learns the truth about Itachi, I've got that all worked out.**


	2. Semi-Random Slice of Life Chapter

A calm night, serene and peaceful.

Then chaos as what appeared to be a demonic entity attacked a temple, easily blowing away the monks with its immense power.

Wind slashing everything, what appeared as a demonic claw growing and slashing through everything in sight.

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Sasuke bolted up, sweat covering his face, then winced and grabbed the Curse Mark on the back of his neck ' _A dream… it was just a dream… what was that?'_ he looked to his side.

Kin was fast asleep aside him, cuddling up against a pillow, a little bit of drool escaping from her mouth.

Sasuke smiled slightly, then gently got out of bed, kissed her forehead, and went out on his balcony to think ' _Hard to believe it's already been three months since the Mount Koryu mission, even harder to believe everything that happened. Right after the mission happened, Tatsu was promoted to jonin and with Tsunade's permission, he left the village with Hayate to train, something about wanting to master his new Dragon Blade and Genryu powers so that he wouldn't accidentally hurt anybody and wanted a little master-student bonding time with Hayate to catch up, said they'd be gone for a few months. After the mission, Kin quit being a field kunoichi and started working at the hospital instead. She only gets two days off a week, and lucky for me that's today. Granted we haven't done any of_ _ **that**_ _since we moved in together, but you've really gotta love PG-13 relationships. Last week, Lee and I took the exams and we both became full-fledged jonin, the same with Neji, only he's almost always out on missions.'_ then he looked back to see Kin stirring and smiled slightly, then frowned ' _I wonder, can I really keep doing this? Can I really go through with this knowing that at any moment Itachi just might rip them away from me again? Can I keep lying to myself, saying that it'll never happen again? Do I really have the power to stop him as I am now?'_

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Lee was in the library, looking up some books on a certain matter ' _Let's see… oh perfect, that'll work…'_ he took out a certain book ' _I know I was able to use Shadow Clones to perfect my Hidden Lotus, but I wonder… is it possible to add elemental chakra to my taijutsu to make it even stronger? Like adding fire chakra to Asakujaku, or lightning or wind chakra to the Hidden Lotus? Maybe even add wind to the Hirudora, if I can use it without losing consciousness…'_

"Looking up elemental chakra?" asked a voice.

Lee looked to see Dosu standing in front of him "Oh, Dosu… Well now that I can use my elemental chakra after the mission at Mount Koryu-"

"You thought incorporating it into your taijutsu would make it much more effective. An interesting theory really."

"Yes. What're you doing here?"

"Looking up Earth-style jutsu, and some material for a water-style jutsu I'm currently developing."

"I see. I honestly never pegged you as a reader."

"I had to come here, the only material back home is Zaku's seemingly endless collection of porn."

"Fair enough." Lee stood up "I was going to meet up with Sasuke and go visit Kakashi-sensei in the hospital. Wanna come?"

"Sure why not, maybe he can help."

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Sasuke sat on a staircase, lost in his thoughts, tugging at his Curse Mark ' _Why did I have that dream? Is it somehow because of that Curse Mark Orochimaru gave me? I know I've been having a lot of nightmares because of it, but that one somehow seemed related to Kurama. What does it mean?'_

"Hey Sasuke." a voice called.

Sasuke looked up to see Lee and Dosu approaching him "Hey guys, what're you doing here?"

"We thought you'd wanna go visit Kakashi-sensei in the hospital."

"He's back from his mission?"

"He got back sometime last night, he was in pretty bad shape though."

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Kakashi sat in a hospital bed reading his Make-Out Violence when he heard a knock on the door to his room "Come in."

Then Sasuke came in, with Dosu and Lee right behind him "You doing alright Kakashi?"

"A little rest and I'll be fine."

"Good."

"So I hear you guys went through quite the ordeal on Mount Koryu."

"Yeah." then Sasuke's mood turned serious "Listen Kakashi, on that last mission-"

"I know. Yamato told me everything he could, and Tatsu sent me a messenger dragon and told me the rest. About Itachi too. I've gotta say Sasuke, all things considered I'm actually really proud of you. You put your mission and the lives of your comrades over your grudge, that's something a true shinobi would do."

"That's not the only reason though. I could feel it, even at my current level Itachi is still way too strong for me."

"Well then I guess you're just going to have to get even stronger than that."

"But you've seen how strong my brother is first-hand, his growth was never natural and now isn't any different."

"Which is why the only thing we can do is accelerate our own growth."

"But how?"

"I've actually got something." Dosu cut in "It's a bit of a longshot, but if all goes well then I think it just might work."

"What is it?"

Dosu handed him a book.

"Atmospheric Conditioning?"

"More specifically cumulonimbus, or thunderclouds. I figured that if you can somehow control the lightning in those clouds like how ninja can manipulate water to make water-style jutsu more powerful, you might be able to enhance your lightning jutsu exponentially, and if you combine that with your Raijin power you would be more than powerful enough to kill Itachi."

"An interesting theory." Kakashi noted "I'm impressed, but it seems rather iffy to me. How would he even create a cumulonimbus cloud?"

"Well…"

"Hey Kakashi, how're you feeling?" then Asuma came in with Team 10.

"Asuma-sensei, you really should try knocking first you know." Ino scolded.

"What's up guys?" Choji waved.

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Tsunade received a report that made her realize that the Akatsuki would soon start to make their move.

While it was a dangerous development, it could also be their chance to smash them.

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Shikamaru leaned in to Sasuke "I heard what happened on Mount Koryu, sorry I couldn't be around to help."

Sasuke nodded "It's alright, I know you were busy with the Chunin Exams and all. Man Naruto's gonna be pissed when he finds out everyone's a chunin except him."

"Tell me about it, especially when he finds out you, Lee, Tatsu and Neji are jonin."

"Asuma, why'd you bring the whole gang in here of all places?" asked Kakashi "This isn't a rec room you know."

"You have a point." Asuma looked at the others "Why don't you guys head on over to the BBQ restaurant, and Sasuke, Lee and Dosu are more than welcome to join us if you'd like."

"You mind if I bring Kin?" asked Sasuke, having completely forgotten the conversation with Dosu and Kakashi about training.

"By all means-" Asuma stopped when he saw that the space that Sasuke had been occupying was suddenly empty "...Anyway, I need to talk to Kakashi alone about some business. In the meantime, the barbecue's on me alright?"

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The group was later at BBQ.

Sasuke was waiting to see Lee show up "Damn Lee, what took you long?"

"Sorry, had to check on something." Lee told him "Where's Dosu and Shikamaru?"

"They said they had to go take care of something."

"That's weird." Ino commented "I don't know about Dosu, but Shikamaru always showed up to celebrate successful missions before. This is a first."

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Asuma stared out of Kakashi's hospital window "Word is, things are really starting to heat up outside the village."

"I figured." Kakashi agreed "Especially after the Mount Koryu mission."

"As long as their objectives are the Tailed Beasts, we can be certain they'll come here sooner or later. They want Naruto, and I'm certain that once he returns to the village they'll make their move."

Then Dosu came in, with Shikamaru right behind him "You don't have to leave us out of this, we're just as concerned about the Akatsuki are you are. Will Naruto be alright though? What if the Akatsuki attack the village? Even you guys couldn't-"

"You're right." Kakashi admitted "Even after training with Master Jiraiya, there's no guarantee he'd be able to do it. Not yet at least."

"We still have Tatsu and his new power after all, as well as Sasuke and Lee. Though now that he's been marked by Orochimaru, Sasuke going out on missions possesses rather high risk when you think about it."

"Tatsu claimed that Dragon sealed the power of the Curse Mark, but even so, we oughta keep him away from any missions too difficult for awhile."

"He just made jonin though, so we can't just stick him on D-rank missions."

"Yes you're right, but for now he'll probably be busy studying up on that lightning idea I told you about."

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Outside the village, two unknown individuals were ransacking a grave, only to find that it wasn't the one they were looking for.

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A few days went by, and things were settling down again.

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Sasuke stumbled out of bed, exhausted from pulling an all-nighter ' _God, at this point I'm never gonna get anywhere.'_ then he saw something that woke him up almost instantly.

"Morning hun, I was wondering when you'd get up." Kin smiled from the kitchen, clad in an apron with her hair in a ponytail.

Sasuke found it incredibly hard not to take her into his arms right then and there ' _If this is the last thing I see, I will die halfway in peace.'_ the other half being the death of Itachi of course.

Kin giggled when she saw the look on his face "Go sit down, it's almost ready."

"Alright." Sasuke sat down at the kitchen counter.

"So how's your research going?"

"In all honesty, hard as hell. Trying to tame lightning itself has a pretty fair chance of frying me inside out." received a hum in reply "Apparently I can make cumulonimbus clouds by sending enough heat into the atmosphere."

"So just use a fire jutsu?"

"That along probably wouldn't be enough, I figure that if I can get Itachi to use the Mangekyo Sharingan and generate enough flames with Amaterasu, maybe that'll heat it up even further and create electrical charges in the atmosphere."

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After some more research, Sasuke was training with some of his Thunder Clones "Alright, come at me!"

"Right! **Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu!"** all 5 clones simultaneously fired fire dragons forward.

Sasuke activated his Sanda Sharingan, electricity quickly coursing through the blade of his Raijin katana " **Lightning Style: Thunder Blade Barrage!"** he quickly thrusted the sword forward, lightning meeting fire, resulting in an explosion that sent him back.

The clones dissipated.

Sasuke staggered to his feet "I've gotta… keep going… I've gotta… get stronger…"

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Ino handed Asuma some flowers from her family's shop "Here you go."

Asuma breathed a sigh "Perfect, thanks."

"Who're they for?"

Asuma blushed "Well… no one… in particular… Well see ya later!" he started rushing out.

"Say hi to Kurenai-sensei for me!"

Asuma froze at the doorway ' _How… How did she know?'_ then he thought of something and looked back "Actually, could I get a second one?"

"Asuma-sensei, isn't two kind of stretching it?"

"This one isn't for her."

"Then who?"

"Someone who taught me a lot, I just didn't realize it yet."

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Limping forward despite his wounds, Sasuke slowly slashed through the last of his Thunder Clones, the force sending him tumbling back into a tree ' _Dammit…'_ slowly, he stumbled back onto his feet "Okay, now to…" then his eyes rolled back and he fell forward.

Kakashi appeared out of nowhere and caught Sasuke on his back "Should've expected this, he's so driven he's pushed himself to the point where he's so exhausted he can't even move."

"Sasuke!" Kin rushed out from the trees, with Dosu and Zaku behind her "Is he alright?"

"A little bit of rest and he should be fine." Kakashi gently set Sasuke on the ground "Though maybe you should…"

"Right." Kin got to work healing Sasuke's injuries.

"I got some word that Tatsu and Hayate are returning today, I know Sasuke will wanna be there to see him."

"I'll be quick with it."

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Asuma stared at the grave of his father, the Third Hokage, as he slowly pulled out a cigarette and began smoking it, recalling his time in the Guardian Shinobi 12 ' _Sometimes I wonder, was I ever really that young? You'd berated me and said I still didn't understand what it meant to protect the king. But now, I think I'm finally starting to understand what you meant. I'm sorry I used to duck out of the village the way I did, going off on my own. Not that I regret any of it. Maybe it wasn't so bad after all, being born into the Sarutobi Clan. You've fulfilled your duty as leader of the village, I see that now.'_ he placed the cigarette down on Sarutobi's grave "I see how good a father you were." then he looked back at another grave "And how good a sensei you were as well."

"Thinking about the king again?"

Asuma looked to see Hayate walk up next to him with a huge grin "When'd you get back?"

"About an hour ago, Tatsu went off with Sasuke and the others to BBQ to catch up."

"So how'd you like training the kid again?"

"Honestly, it felt great. Just like old times."

"Back when you trained him when he was a kid of back when we were both genin training under Kuroga-sensei?"

"Both. I lost my parents during the war, and Kuroga-sensei and Kumiko both took me in, cared for me like I was one of their own. I thought that looking after their sons was the least I could do. But in time, I came to see Kazuma like a younger brother, but Tatsu himself is actually like a son to me."

"He sees you like a father-figure, and I should know. He's mentioned it god only knows how many times."

"I know. He's grown far beyond my teachings now, he'd beat me easily in a one-on-one fight. You too probably."

"I don't know about that, but he'd definitely give me a hard time. He's really come a long way since those days he was in the academy."

"I know. So you look like you're heading out on a mission."

"Yeah, it's just a little training mission at the Fire Temple, gonna help train some of the monks and see how Chiriku is doing."

"Oh him, well give him my regards."

"Will do." then he walked away.

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"So yeah, that's about it." Hayate placed a shogi tile on the board.

Tatsu raised an eyebrow "Really? The Climbing Silver move right off the bat like that? What's the rush? Come on, let's take our time sensei."

"To penetrate the enemy's line, sometimes you have to be willing to risk a bold move."

"But I thought you and Asuma both hated risky moves like that."

"To defend your King from a superior opponent, one must make some sacrifices."

"What's with you? You've been like this ever since we got back."

"It's nothing, just thinking. I'm just glad that Asuma finally came to understand the true importance of the King."

"Well sure, if you lose your king then you lose the game, end of story."

"Let me ask you something Tatsu, if I picking Leaf shinobi to represent the pieces on this Shogi board, I'd say you were most like the knight."

"Why's that?"

"It's not the most powerful piece on the board but it keeps getting stronger to protect its king, and it has the unique ability to keep leaping over others. It reminds me of how flexible your mind is, the same for your will."

"Fair enough. So which one would you be?"

"I'm nothing, I'm just…" he placed a piece.

"A sacrificial pawn?" Tatsu made his move "Come on sensei, you'd have to be more like a rook or bishop."

"If you say so, but do you know which one the King is?"

"Well that'd have to be the Hokage right?"

"I thought that too a while ago, the same with Asuma, but that's not it."

"Then who? The elders? No way in hell it's Danzo."

"Oh by no means." Hayate waved his hand, then gave a kind smile "You'll know when the time is right."

"If you say so." Tatsu made another move "Looks like Naruto's gonna be back in a few months now."

"Yeah, and then the Akatsuki will probably make their move."

"No doubt about it, they're apparently targeting jinchuuriki. Who knows if any of us will make it out of this alive."

"Well that's one of the reasons to live life as full as you possibly can, don't leave behind any regrets."

"You're one to talk sensei, isn't there something you should be doing at some point?"

Hayate caught his meaning and blushed "Well…"

"Come on man, it's been 10 years! I know you guys kept putting it off because of your sickness, but that's been over and done with for 2 years. Now you're just dodging the subject. Come on sensei, if you love her then just go ahead. You sleep with her almost every night, you might as well already."

"...I'm really beginning to regret telling you about that." Hayate breathed a long sigh "You know you're right, maybe it's time I do take the next step. After all, with the Akatsuki on the rise who knows what's around the corner. Like I said, live life to the fullest you possibly can so that you don't have any regrets when your time's at an end." he clutched something inside the pocket of his jonin vest and smiled "You do whatever you want for today Tatsu, I've gotta make sure I have no regrets." and he walked off.

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Tatsu later found Sasuke moping on the Fourth Hokage's head "Well you seem as cheerful as ever."

"Yeah whatever." Sasuke grumbled.

"What's up with you?"

"It's about Kin."

"You didn't get her pregnant did you?"

"We haven't even had sex yet."

"Then what'd you do?"

Sasuke shot him a serious look "I fell in love with her."

"Uh-huh. And the problem is?"

"Can I really let myself fall in love? After Itachi slaughtered my clan, I felt a lot of things. Anger, sadness, frustration… loneliness. Can I really commit myself to her, knowing fully well that it could happen again at any time?"

Tatsu let out a heavy sigh "Honestly, I was like that too. After my brother died, I was a little paranoid because he was basically my whole world. It took me awhile, but then I remembered something."

"What's that?"

"I still had people who cared about me, Hayate-sensei in particular." he put a firm hand on Sasuke's shoulder "Look man, you've got a choice here. You can be paranoid about Itachi for the rest of your life, or you can forge new bonds that you can protect. Your choice. Well I'd better go, if you need me then I'll be watching while Hayate-sensei proposes to Yugao." and he leapt off the Hokage monument " **Summoning Jutsu!"** he summoned Ryu and landed on his back once he cleared the Fourth's chin, flying into the distance.

' _Well he knows how to make an exit.'_ Sasuke stood and stared out at the distance ' _He's right, a decision has to be made and it's mine to make.'_

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Kin sat atop the apartment she and Sasuke shared, lost in her own thoughts ' _Should I tell him how I feel?'_

"What's with you?"

Kin looked to see Zaku climb up on the roof and sit beside her "Zaku…"

"You've got that little kicked puppy look that you always had when you were alone back in Sound."

"Don't remind me, I never wanna relive those memories. And yet, they continue haunting me…"

"What's wrong? Come on, tell protective big brother, my cute little sister." he wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulder.

Kin pouted slightly and looked away "I told you and Dosu not to call me that."

"And that's why we do, so what's the problem?"

Kin shot him a sad look "I'm in love with Sasuke."

"...That doesn't answer my question."

"I mean, can I really love someone after all I've been through? You know what my life's been like, can I really find it in myself to risk something like falling in love?"

"Kin…" Zaku held her closer "Come on, you know just as well as any of us that that part of our lives is over. We've got Sasuke to thank for that. If you really do love Sasuke then you should be with him, but if he hurts you then I'll find him and stab him in the balls."

Kin giggle softly "Thanks Zaku, I needed that." she pecked him on the cheek and walked off, knowing what had to be done.

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Sasuke found himself down by the lake, staring at his reflection in the water ' _I only wonder, will she feel the same way?'_

"Hey."

Sasuke looked to see Kin standing beside him "Hey…"

"It's really beautiful…"

"Yeah…"

"You wanna go for a swim?"

"Sure why not." he took off his shorts and shirt, revealing his swim trunks and his chiseled muscular abs.

Kin took off her clothes, leaving her in nothing but a gray bikini, showing off her body.

Sasuke took a good long look at her and only one word came to mind ' _Damn!'_ as he gazed awestruck at Kin's perfect body, marvelling at her beauty.

Everything about Kin was gorgeous, her creamy skin, smooth toned stomach with a slender waist and fully formed hips, toned thighs with legs any girl would kill for, and to top it off, large, round and perky D-cup breasts. She blushed when she saw Sasuke staring at her "So you wanna go in?"

"Yeah, sure…" he led her from the shore to a fairly deep part not too far away.

Then Kin stopped him "Sasuke, there's something I wanna tell you."

"What is it?"

Kin took a deep breath, no going back now "My life when I was little was, in short, hell. My parents were both killed by bandits when I was little, and I was left alone wandering the streets. I had to steal just to survive, and I was beaten for it time and time again, until Orochimaru found me. He said that he saw potential in me and offered to help me reach it in exchange for serving him until I died. Since it was either that or starve or get beaten, I accepted. Honestly, I probably would've been better staying on the streets. Sound was hell, almost as bad. We were basically pawns and lab rats for his experiments. Then again, if not for that then I never would've met Dosu and Zaku, and they became like protective big brothers to me. They always teased me for that though, but I didn't mind. It was like that for about 3 years, until the Chunin Exams came and he sent us to the Leaf. I already sensed the difference from the Sound. The Sound was dark, depressing, and filled with misery. The Leaf was bright, peaceful and full of kind and caring people. What mostly caught my attention was you, especially in the Forest of Death. You could've just killed us and taken our scroll, but you chose to let us live."

"Weren't you unconscious?"

"I was just faking, mainly hoping that I'd somehow survive." she gave a sad smile "I've never really been a warrior, that bell genjutsu I used against Shikamaru in the Chunin exams was as good as I was in battle, which is probably the main reason I lost. Zaku did too, but at least he put up a fight. Then Kabuto came and captured us, I'm sure he and Orochimaru were planning to sacrifice us for the jutsu he used to reanimate the First and Second Hokage, but you and your sensei came in and saved us and you sent me and Zaku to the home of Tatsu's dragon summons to keep us safe. After that, you saved us from Ibiki and even offered us a place in your home. In the beginning, I just felt gratitude, but now I feel something more. More than what we've been doing for the past two years."

Sasuke felt his heart racing "What are you saying?"

Kin wrapped her arms around his neck "What I'm saying is… I love you, Sasuke Uchiha."

Sasuke froze ' _She… loves me?'_ slowly, he wrapped his arms around her waist "Kin… to be honest, my feelings for you have been developing for awhile now too. The only thing is, well you know about my clan. And about Itachi."

Kin nodded.

"Well to be completely truthful, I've developed what Kakashi refers to as (word he refuses to use)-blocking trust issues."

"By word you refuse to use-"

"Kakashi's word, not mine. Anyway, he basically said that it resulted in me having a fear of commitment, and that the fact that I've gotten this far with you has to be some sort of miracle at work. Again, his words not mine. But a little while ago, Tatsu helped me realize something: I still have people that care about me, and I'm glad that you're one of them. Now I can let myself tell you this." he tightened his hold on her waist "I love you too Kin Tsuchi." he leaned in and engaged her in a long and passionate kiss.

Kin gladly returned it, the same thought as him going through her mind ' _Who would've thought that-'_

' _-after everything I've been through, I'd finally find love who'd understand my pain?'_

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Lee was watching from behind a bush through a pair of binoculars "Bout time."

Tatsu appeared in the bush beside him "Hey, how'd it go?"

"See for yourself." Lee handed him another pair of binoculars.

"Shit, they're already at the halfway point?"

"Yep. Oh speaking of which, how'd it go with Hayate-sensei?"

"She stared, fainted, came to after about 20 minutes, jumped on him and now they're doing it inside the Second Hokage's nostril."

"...Nostril?"

"Apparently Yugao is as dangerous with a sword in battle as she is in-"

"Woah woah woah woah woah, TMI."

"Hey you asked." Tatsu looked back to Kin and Sasuke in the lake "Woah. Holy crap, I didn't know it could bend that way."

"Are they doing it?"

"No I'd sense their chakra levels shoot way up- Hold crap, I didn't know _that_ could bend that way either."

 **A/N:**

 **In case you didn't figure it out, the whole thing about atmospheric conditioning was basically foreshadowing Sasuke using Kirin against Itachi.**

 **I was gonna make the Guardian Shinobi 12 into another filler arc, but in the end I decided that one was enough, so this would be a shorter chapter and the last one before Naruto returns.**


	3. Naruto's Return, A New Mission Begins

A full 2 ½ years had passed since the Sasuke Retrieval Mission, and after all of this time training, things were finally heating up.

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Tatsu came in to hand in a mission report "Another mission done."

Tsunade nodded "Good work Tatsu."

"It's easy these days." then he saw a familiar sight and turned to Konohamaru's squad "Let me guess, Tora?"

"Yep, and these runts are the fresh meat this time around."

"I pity them. Hey Ebisu."

"Hello there Tatsu." then Ebisu went to scolding his genin "It was the simple case of a lost cat, do you know how long you've been out there?"

"Yeah but sensei, that cat was faster than lightning." Udon protested.

Moegi nodded "It was almost like it'd run off before." she failed to notice Tatsu cracking up.

"I don't wanna hear it." Ebisu cut them off sharply "A mission of this delicate nature requires speed and precision, which you three are sorely lacking in. You need more training."

"Well how do you expect me to reach my limits on a lame mission like this one? Hey Iruka-sensei, don't you guys have anything flashier for us?" Konohamaru complained.

Iruka sighed "Look, it's not that simple."

"Listen carefully." Ebisu got to lecturing again "You three screwups only just made genin level, no one's going to assign you to higher admissions right out of the gate."

"All you'll be getting is D-rank for now." Tsunade told them.

Konohamaru stubbornly sat on the ground "I'm not taking no for an answer, after all you're looking at the 7th Hokage."

"The 7th? What about the 6th Hokage?"

Tatsu let out a loud snort "That should be obvious, it's gonna be Naruto end of story."

Everyone perked up at that.

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After Konohamaru and his team were gone, Tsunade stared down at them "7th Hokage perhaps, but definitely a second Naruto."

"Yeah…" Iruka gave a fond smile ' _I hope you're doing okay out there, Naruto…_ It's been quite awhile since we've seen him, not since he left to train with Master Jiraiya."

"It's about time for him to come home isn't it?" Shizune pointed out.

Tatsu smirked "I can sense it, he's on his way home as we speak."

Tsunade was more serious "The Leaf Village needs him to return, there's too much happening for him to be away now."

"At this point he'd better be able to take me on. By the way, when he does come back I have a request."

"What's that?"

"I was hoping to fight him and Sasuke 2-on-1, and if he impresses me enough then can you make him a jonin?"

"We'll see how he does."

"Fair enough. And that other request?"

"If they all agree to it then consider it done."

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"Hey Sasuke!" a voice called.

Sasuke looked back to see Konohamaru and his team running up to him "Oh hey."

"So where are you off to?"

"Main Gate, picking up something for Tsunade so Ino doesn't have to. You wanna come?"

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At the same time, two figures, actually Naruto and Jiraiya themselves, had entered the village.

"It's been about 2 ½ years now that I think about it." Naruto noted.

Jiraiya nodded "So it has."

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Konohamaru was telling Sasuke about having to catch Tora "And the cat went nuts and started scratching my face off."

Sasuke smirked "That's pretty much what happened to Naruto, sure brings back a lot of memories."

"Hey by the way, have you gotten word or anything from Naruto?"

"Not since he left."

"Too bad."

"But he should be coming back pretty soon though." Sasuke soon reached the Main Gate and met Izumo and Kotetsu "Hey guys, how's it going?"

Kotetsu grinned "Well look who it is, looks like something's waiting for you back in town. You'd have to see it to believe it."

"You don't mean-" Sasuke took off running.

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Naruto ran to the top of a pole and stared out at the village "Now this takes me back, the village hasn't changed a bit! I'm home everyone, Naruto Uzumaki has returned to the Hidden Leaf Village! _Man, I'm feeling so nostalgic now. And what do you know, they added Grandma Tsunade's face to the Hokage Monument.'_

"Naruto!" a voice called, and Naruto looked down to see Sasuke "That you up there? When'd you get back to the village?"

"Just now!" Naruto leapt down and bumped fists with him "Been a while Sasuke."

"You've gotten taller."

"Guess so."

' _He seems more mature since the last time I saw him. I give it 5 minutes tops before that passes and he screws something.'_

"Why're you staring at me like that?"

"Hey Naruto!" then Konohamaru unleashed a certain jutsu " **Sexy Jutsu."**

Jiraiya was in full pervert mode, while Sasuke just sighed ' _That's strike 1.'_

Konohamaru dropped the transformation "Well what do you think? Not too bad in the curves department there huh?"

Naruto chuckled "Konohamaru, I'm not that scrawny little kid anymore and you shouldn't be using jutsu like that either. It's beneath you."

Sasuke stared at him ' _10… 9… 8…'_

"I mean come on Konohamaru, is that all you've got?! Now step aside and get a load of my brand new Pervy Ninjutsu!"

' _Dammit, I only got to 3.'_

"Here we go!"

"Are you that stupid?!" a sharp kick to the jaw sent Naruto flying into a wall.

"Hi Lee…" it came out muffled from all of the rock in his mouth.

"Hey Naruto." Lee picked him up by the leg "Been a long time, huh?"

"Your kick has gotten better?"

"And I'm surprised you haven't lost any teeth. Still, be glad it was me and not Ino. In battle she's basically become a mini-Tsunade."

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Tsunade stared at Jiraiya, Naruto, Lee and Sasuke before him "It's been a long time you two, your training proved to be fruitful I hope."

Jiraiya scoffed "You think we would've come back without producing any results?"

"Mission accomplished grandma." Naruto gave a thumbs up.

Tsunade nodded in approval "I'm glad to hear it, show me what you've got kid."

"What, like right now?"

"I have someone I'd like you to go up against. He just got back from a simple mission so he'd be ready for just this moment. Your opponent will be…" she heard a knock "Come in."

Sasuke and the rest looked back to see Temari and Shikamaru enter "Hey Shikamaru, Temari, guess what I found at the gate."

Shikamaru blinked, then grinned "Is that- It is, Naruto it's you."

Naruto grinned "Hey Shikamaru, what's up?"

Temari stared at Naruto in shock ' _Is that the same little squirt?'_

"Just got back today."

Shikamaru grinned "Look at you, who'd ever believe you're the same idiotic- well I mean to say, you haven't changed haven't you."

"Not at all." Sasuke and Lee chorused dryly.

"Didn't think so."

Naruto hung his head "Give me a break guys, come on. Hang on Shikamaru, does this mean you're my opponent?"

"Opponent? What're you talking about? I just came over here to drop off some paperwork."

"Oh, well if it's not you then is it-" he stared at Temari "What's your name again?"

Temari felt the vein in her forehead throbbing "You don't remember me?"

"Well…"

"Not him stupid." Sasuke dragged him away "Before that, there's someone out there you'll wanna meet."

"Huh?" Naruto poked his head out the window.

"So Naruto, you went and got all grown up." a new voice cut in.

Naruto grinned "Kakashi-sensei!" he leapt out to meet him "Well you haven't changed a bit sensei." then he reached into his bag "Hang on a sec, I've got something for you. A little present."

Kakashi stared in disbelief "NO WAY! (Japanese version is funnier) Is that- Is that really-"

"The first new issue of the Make Out series in three years, pretty boring if you ask me but I know you like this stuff so-"

Kakashi opened the book with a giddy laughter "It's so beautiful…"

"Enough." Sasuke got in between them "No more porn, I get enough of that crap with Zaku back home. Anyway Naruto, I've already gotten the details. Head over to our old training grounds."

"That's where my opponent is waiting?"

"Well you're half right, we're both fighting him, 2-on-1."

"Both of us at once?"

"That's right." Tsunade confirmed "This person will put you to the test, how well you do against him will determine your future status and rankings."

"To see if you deserve to still be genin level or to be something higher. We'll meet our opponent at the training grounds in an hour."

"Oh." then Naruto looked around "Where'd Kakashi-sensei go?"

"Where do you think? To read his porn."

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As they wandered around town, Naruto was grumbling about Kakashi and the book "Stupid Kakashi-sensei, I'm sorry I ever gave it to him. That stupid book is more important to him than our training."

"You shouldn't be surprised." Sasuke pointed out dryly "It's Kakashi, but at least now we've got time to discuss important stuff."

"Oh yeah." he leaned back towards Temari and Shikamaru "So, are you two going out or what?"

Shikamaru snorted "Not even close idiot."

Temari scoffed "You've gotta be joking, like I would ever even. The Chunin Exams are about to start, I've been busy running back and forth between your village and mine getting ready for them."

"Yeah that's right, and I'm her escort. It's a drag and don't ask how it happened, but I've been put in charge of organizing the Chunin Exams."

Naruto blinked "The Chunin Exams, huh? Man that takes me back. _Kind of leaves a sour taste in my mouth though, considering what happened with Sakura and all.'_

"Yeah well speaking of which, what are you gonna do Naruto?"

"About what?"

"What do you think? About the Chunin Exams. You're the only one in our year who isn't a chunin. Everyone is but you."

"...HUH?!" Naruto rounded on Sasuke and Lee "Sasuke, Bushy Brow, you guys have been made chunin?"

Sasuke snorted "That's not even the half of it. Kankuro, Temari, Tatsu, Neji, Dosu, Lee and I have all been made jonin."

"Jonin? What're you talking about?" then he thought of something "What about Gaara? What's he?"

"Well…" Sasuke told him what'd happened with Gaara.

"I see, so Gaara was named Kazekage."

"About a year after you left."

"I see…" then he grinned "That's great. Well I'm not about to be outdone by him. I'm still gonna be Hokage one day, just you wait Gaara!"

' _So he really has grown up a bit. It'll pass.'_

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Kakashi was reading the new book ' _Marvellous, truly marvellous.'_

"What do you think, not bad huh?" Jiraiya appeared in front of him "If you ask me then it's the best one I've ever written."

"Bullshit." Tatsu made himself known on the wall above them "Face the facts pervert, you've only ever written one good book and that's not it."

"Oh really, now what makes you say that?"

"Personal experience." then he turned serious "Now then, onto business."

"Right, I'm leaving Naruto up to you two as promised."

"I can see he's grown alright, but has he grown up?" asked Kakashi.

"You implying I haven't done my job?"

"Yes." Tatsu blurted out almost immediately.

"Fine go ahead, underestimate him. You'll be sorry."

"Very encouraging."

"The ones we've been watching are about to make their move."

"You mean the Akatsuki. I've got some intel on three of them. One is Itachi, you already know about him. The next is Kisame, a master swordsman, highly skilled in water style, capable of absorbing chakra. The third one I got some intel on from Dragon, and this is just because he fought him. His name is Deidara, a rogue ninja from the Hidden Stone, specializes in clay explosives infused with his chakra. Still, I was wondering when they'd make their move."

"It's no surprise, bound to happen sooner or later."

"So why do you think they're finally showing their hands?" asked Kakashi "What are they after?"

"Their ultimate objective is still unclear, but I know one thing."

"They want Kurama inside Naruto." Tatsu finished for him.

"As to why- well you can be sure they have some evil purpose in mind. That's why I've been going around, spreading the word to our allies. Something's coming, so they'd better boost their security and keep on their toes. By the way, don't you have a test to conduct?"

"Crap, I've gotta get there before Naruto and Sasuke. Later guys." and he raced off.

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Gaara and his Council of Advisors had heard from member Yura about the Akatsuki and how to spot them.

After that, Yura noticed Deidara and his actual partner, a short hunchbacked figure by the name of Sasori, approaching the village to capture Gaara for the One-Tailed Shukaku sealed inside of him.

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Naruto was growing impatient "Where the hell is this guy?"

Sasuke shrugged "How should I know? _I know he likes to make an entrance, but he should've been here by now.'_

"So who is this guy we're fighting anyway?"

"That'd be me bitches!"

Naruto looked up to see a figure drop from the sky "Tatsu?"

"Hey man!" Tatsu caught him in a bro-hug "See? I told you I'd be a jonin by the time you got back."

"Shouldn't be surprised, we're talking about you after all." Naruto looked around "This place brings back memories."

"Yeah, Sakura was with you guys."

"What happened with her anyway?"

"She's still got 5 more years in prison on the charge of attempted murder. Anyway, on to your test." Tatsu held up two bells "Alright guys, show me how far you've come. After all, you're not gonna let the Akatsuki or Orochimaru get the better of you so easily are you?"

"Not a chance, what the hell do you think we've been putting myself through all this training for?"

"Fair enough. Now the rules are the same as they were the first time around, only instead of Kakashi you're facing me now. I don't care how you do it, just get these bells away from me. How well you do will determine your future ranking Naruto, and whether or not the two of you will have a place on the new team I'm putting together. And remember Kakashi's golden rule-"

"If we're not prepared to kill you then we won't get the bells, we know."

"Good, show no mercy if you wanna get these bells. You've got until sunrise tomorrow. Okay then, shall we get started?"

"Right!" Naruto made the first move and threw some shuriken, then formed several quick hand seals " **Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** the shuriken multiplied.

Tatsu dodged and threw some shuriken of his own.

Naruto formed a Shadow Clone and had the clone pull him out of the way.

' _Impressive. Not something I would've expected from the old Naruto I'll give him that much.'_

"If you like that then you'll love my new fire jutsu!" he formed hand seals.

Tatsu appeared behind him and grabbed both arms "That's enough of that. _He's really grown up right before my eyes. Not only that…'_ he looked to see another Naruto behind him holding a kunai to his back ' _His timing with the Shadow Clones has improved as well._ Well well Naruto, you've really matured. But you've still got a ways to go, clearly you're still as impatient as you ever were. I haven't told you guys to start yet. Now let's do this properly, okay guys? Ready… Start!" he disappeared.

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Yura, actually a spy for Sasori, killed all of the guards and allowed Sasori and Deidara into the Sand Village.

Deidara quickly formed a gigantic clay bird and took to the skies.

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Sunset came, and the area was quiet.

Sasuke checked the surrounding areas ' _Right. Above. Left. Behind. Nothing there, so there's only one place left to look.'_ he drew his Raijin sword, channeled lightning into it, and stuck it into the ground, rupturing it.

Tatsu appeared, seeming rather put out ' _Well, not as bad as with Ino I guess. Looks like he's been learning a lot more with Shisui Uchiha in Limbo than I anticipated.'_

"Well Tatsu, I found you didn't I?"

' _He infused his chakra together with the power of Raijin sealed in the sword, focused it, and released it all at once. Something like that would have to require incredibly precise chakra control. You guys had your shot, now it's my turn.'_ he disappeared.

"Naruto."

"Right." and they took off into the forest.

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Tatsu leapt over trees and hid behind a bush ' _You've both gotten better at hiding your chakra presence.'_ then he saw Naruto hiding behind a tree ' _There you are. The first thing a shinobi must learn is to conceal his presence and remain hidden.'_ he looked and saw Sasuke hiding behind a tree in a different direction ' _This is way different from before. Back then Sasuke and the banshee hid while Naruto challenged Kakashi like an idiot, and Hayate-sensei and I watched with snacks. That was a good Tuesday.'_ he was ripped out of his thoughts by a barrage of kunai suddenly flying towards him ' _Shit!'_ he dodged them and clashed his kunai with Naruto, then faced him on the ground, just as Sasuke emerged from his hiding place "Time for today's lesson. Shinobi battle skills rule #1: taijutsu." he quickly kicked Naruto in the gut, sending him into a bush.

"Got you!" Sasuke charged and started slashing with his Raijin katana ' _Just need one shot!'_

Tatsu was continuously dodging "It won't do any good if you can't hit me." he ducked out of the way, causing Sasuke to slash down a tree ' _That was close.'_

" **Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** Naruto created several clones that all charged.

"Alright then, bring it." Tatsu easily kicked and punched several Shadow Clones that came his way before making his way upwards.

"Get back here!" three Naruto clones charged after him.

" **Dancing Leaf Shadow."** Tatsu appeared behind them and wrapped them in bandages.

"That's the attack Bushy Brow uses!"'

"Where do you think I learned it stupid?" Tatsu sent them crashing to the ground with a quick Primary Lotus, destroying them "Now then, where do I find the real one?"

"Right over here!" Naruto charged out of the bushes, fingers up " **Leaf Village Secret Finger Jutsu:-"**

' _F*ck!'_

" **Thousand Years of Death!"** fingers thrusted forward.

Tatsu leapt up and dodged it, but just barely ' _That was WAY too close.'_

"Dammit, I thought I had it for sure that time!"

' _I thought that was the end for me, in more ways than one.'_

"Got you!" Sasuke charged in and slashed.

Tatsu dodged, leaving another tree to be cut down ' _I remember Kakashi saying that this whole thing was supposed to be a lot easier. Kakashi just reading and nonchalantly blocking Naruto's attacks with one hand, knocking Sakura out cold with a simple genjutsu, and leaving Sasuke as nothing more than a head in the ground. Those pictures were worth a crapload. Still though, they've been apart for almost 3 years and their teamwork is almost on the level of the Ino-Shika-Cho.'_

" **Alright, Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** Naruto summoned up to a thousand clones.

' _The sheer number of these clones is unbelievable, and now it's even more than it ever was before.'_

"Let's do it!" half of the clones charged in.

"Guess I better get serious." Tatsu initiated an upwards spin kick, chakra spiralling around his feet in a circle " **Leaf Dragon God!"** he summoned the Leaf Dragon God, which devoured several clones and crashed down on the rest of the ones assaulting him "Alright, just send in the rest of them."

The rest of the clones leapt into the air.

' _So what's his next move?'_

" **Chidori Stream!"** Sasuke channeled his Chidori into the ground.

Tatsu was forced to leap back onto a high branch to avoid it ' _What's the next move of this little combo?'_

" **Fire Style: Hell Foxfire!"** each Naruto clone above him unleashed a blast of fire from their mouths, taking on the form of a fox.

Tatsu leapt back to the ground right after the Chidori Stream subsided ' _At this point, the flames will die down before they reach me.'_

Then the original Naruto leapt up and formed hand seals " **Wind Style: Cyclone Cannon!"** he unleashed a blast of wind from his mouth, rocketing downwards and increasing the size and power of the flames.

"Impressive Naruto, but you're not the only one who's learned a few new tricks in the past few years." Tatsu formed some hand seals " **Water Style: Bending Shockwave!"** he unleashed a giant wave of water that bended and put out each blast of fire before it hit him "Now then, what should I do next?"

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Deidara was quick to use some simple C1 clay explosives to get rid of the guards on lookout duty around the Sand village.

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Nightfall hit, and Naruto and Sasuke were wandering through the forest, looking out for Tatsu and trying to predict his next move.

"Last time I heard the bells they were coming from this direction, I'm sure of it." Naruto told him.

"He could've let us hear them so he could draw us in." Sasuke pointed out "Don't forget, this is Tatsu we're dealing with."

"Sasuke…" a voice echoed.

Sasuke held out a hand to stop Naruto "Who's there?"

"It's me…" then _he_ showed up "Sasuke."

At the sight of _him,_ Sasuke nearly lost it "Itachi… Uchiha…" then he smirked "Good try Tatsu, but my Sharingan can see through genjutsu, now come out and face me like a man. Naruto."

"Right. I've been waiting for a chance to use this." Naruto held out his right hand, and somewhat slowly, a Rasengan formed in his palm "Sasuke, where is he?"

"Behind that tree."

"Just stay back and let me do a little showboating. **Rasengan!"** Naruto slammed it into the tree.

Tatsu leapt back aways, pissed ' _The one time I try a genjutsu and I nearly get a Rasengan to the balls! F*ck you Kurenai!'_

"Well then Tatsu, there something you wanna say? I don't think we heard you before."

"Shinobi battle skills rule #2: genjutsu. I only did that one because Kakashi made me."

"You'll have to come up with something better than that."

"Are you kidding me? It took me days just to come up with that!"

"Yeah well sorry to disappoint, but we're not that stupid."

"I wouldn't be too sure about that."

Naruto looked and saw the bells on the ground "Check it out Sasuke, the bells slipped off his belt!" he rushed over, only to get caught in a rope trap.

"You see? You're still falling for the same old tricks."

Naruto disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Or not."

"No way I'd fall for a lame-ass trap like that!" Naruto appeared behind him and slugged him in the face.

Tatsu disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Dammit, he substituted with a Shadow Clone!"

' _So lameass old traps like that won't work huh? Maybe not all of them, but still…'_

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Deidara successfully completed his infiltration, only for Gaara to confront him, leading to a mid-air confrontation.

Gaara was quick to draw sand from the ground of the village, giving him the geographical advantage.

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Naruto quickly dodged a barrage of kunai "So he's over there!" he fired his own kunai.

' _Dammit!'_ Tatsu dodged it, then dodge a punch by Sasuke and kicked him to the ground, only for Sasuke to disappear in a puff of smoke ' _A Shadow Clone combined with a transformation.'_

"Got you!" Sasuke charged down from above.

' _If that touches me I'm dead!'_

" **Raijin Chidori!"** Sasuke slammed down a Raijin-powered Chidori, missing Tatsu by a mere few inches "Dammit!"

"Sasuke!" Naruto joined up with him "You get him?"

"What the hell do you think?"

"Nice work guys, almost had me there." Tatsu appeared in front of them "Shinobi battle skill rule #3: ninjutsu. For this, I'm gonna pull out an old favorite." he leapt back and quickly formed several hand seals " **Fire Style: Crimson Dragon!"** he unleashed a massive red fire dragon.

" **Lightning Style: Thunder Ball Jutsu!"** while Naruto leapt out of the way, Sasuke unleashed a stroke from his Raijin sword, sending out a ball of lightning, resulting in an explosion, and when it subsided, Tatsu was nowhere in sight.

Naruto looked around "Now where is he?"

"Right here!" an arm grabbed Naruto's ankle from below " **Earth Style: Headhunter Jutsu!"** he pulled Naruto underground, leaving his head exposed while Tatsu himself emerged "How are you gonna get out of this one?"

"Like this." then he disappeared.

"Another Shadow Clone."

"Get him!" Naruto and Sasuke charged in.

"Wanna bet?" Tatsu leapt back onto the water and blitzed through several hand seals " **Water Style: Tsunami Dragon Barrage!"** several water dragons rose from the river behind him and charged downwards.

" **Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu!"** Sasuke breathed out a fire dragon, pushing back the water dragons.

" **Wind Style: Cyclone Cannon!"** Naruto breathed out a blast of wind, increasing the power of Sasuke's jutsu, cancelling out the water dragons entirely, engulfing the area in steam.

When the steam subsided, Tatsu could sense them retreating ' _They're probably trying to come up with a plan.'_ he checked his watch ' _It's already almost midnight, if we're gonna head to Ichiraku after this then we're gonna have to hurry.'_

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"Fire, earth and water, one right after the other." Naruto muttered "Nobody's got that many tricks up their sleeve."

"This is Tatsu we're dealing with." Sasuke pointed out.

"Yeah but he shouldn't be able to use earth or water!"

"Not originally, but he was after the mission to Mount Koryu. Now he's giving us an expert mission in just how skilled he truly is."

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The battle in the Sand Village continued.

Gaara finally used his sand as a complete shield, enveloping himself in it as he attempted to trap Deidara in his Sand Prison.

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Naruto and Sasuke hid by a tree.

"I shouldn't be surprised." Naruto muttered "He's always been strong, but this is just ridiculous."

"And this is just the tip of the iceberg." Sasuke muttered "Just be glad he hasn't drawn his sword, not that he needs it."

"That's the thing I don't get. What's with that sword, and since when can he use earth and water style?"

"That's thanks to the mission to Mount Koryu about 6 months ago, I'll tell you about it if we survive."

"Still, I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Tatsu has been amazing me since day one. I should've expected him to be strong as f*ck. He's almost as smart as Shikamaru, better tracking abilities than Kiba, eyes stronger than yours, his taijutsu is almost as good as Bushy Brow."

"On top of that, considering everything that's happened, he might even be stronger than Kakashi now."

"Are you serious? Well then I've got one idea, but it might be a stretch."

"All out assault with both of us using our strongest techniques?"

"Hell yeah!"

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Things were quiet in the forest.

Tatsu sat behind a tree, panting ' _I never thought they'd give me such a workout, I was so impressed with how they've improved that I let myself get carried away.'_

"Tatsu." they emerged, taking on stances.

"So you're going with the typical all-out assault tactic. Fair enough." Tatsu got to his feet "I was thinking it was about time to end this." chakra began building around him "Sasuke, you gonna use _that_ thing?"

"Yep." Sasuke charged a Chidori, turning the typical blue but with a single golden point at the center of the attack.

"Naruto, you've got something up your sleeve?" Tatsu summoned a Shadow Clone, which then promptly began adding the chakra nature as he began forming a Rasengan.

"You bet I do!" Naruto formed a Rasengan in his hand, the ball turning a crimson color as it was compressed further, leaving the crimson ball spiralling from within.

"Fine then, let's end this." the Rasengan in his hand evolved, taking on a different shade of blue with points of wind chakra sticking out at each end, a dragon mark at the center " **Wind Style: Genryu Rasengan!"** he unleashed his attack.

" **Tornado Rasengan!"** Naruto unleashed the crimson spiralling Rasengan.

" **Raijin Chidori!"** Sasuke unleashed a Raijin-powered Chidori that met the clash in the middle, increasing the shockwave from the attacks.

Tatsu looked back and saw the bells fly off his belt ' _They've really grown.'_ the attacks collided further, resulting in an explosion.

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Things were getting serious in the battle in the Sand Village.

Deidara planted a bomb inside Gaara's shield, only for Gaara to prevent it using his Sand Armor.

Gaara later brought out the Shukaku and attacked Deidara using gigantic sand claws, managing to crush Deidara's arm in the process.

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When everything settled, Naruto and Sasuke had the bells "Yeah!"

Tatsu let out a sigh and sheathed his Dragon Blade "I honestly didn't think you guys would be able to take the bells."

"They've certainly demonstrated some growth."

Naruto and the rest looked back to see Tsunade, Jiraiya, Shizune, Kakashi, Ino, Kin and Lee emerged from the trees "Grandma Tsunade, and everybody else."

"Tatsu, is there anything you'd like to say?"

Tatsu shrugged "Not much to say. They definitely earned their spots and Naruto earned his new rank, there's no doubt about that."

"What're you guys talking about?" asked Naruto.

"Well we've been discussing what your status would be in the future." Shizune told him.

"What our status will be?"

"That's right." Tsunade confirmed "Naruto Uzumaki, Sasuke Uchiha, Rock Lee."

Then Lee appeared beside them "Yes maam."

"You three are a team now, along with Tatsu here as the leader."

"That's right." Tatsu cut in "From here on out, the four of us are Team Dragon."

"Okay, that sounds hella cool." Naruto admitted "So what'll we do then, what's the scoop?"

"We'll be going out on all our missions together again, with me as your leader. And Naruto, thanks to your little performance, you're now a jonin."

Naruto stared, then jumped high into the air and started cheering "HELL YEAH!"

"Come down stupid, I'm not finished yet. Team Dragon was specifically designed to be made up of the strongest jonin our village had to offer, meaning the four of us. If you hadn't impressed me to my satisfaction then Dosu would be on the team instead once he got back from a mission."

"Oh, well lucky me then."

"Lucky you." then Kin came up and wrapped her arms around him "It's great to see you again Naruto."

"You too Kin."

"And congratulations on becoming a jonin." Kin then pecked him on the cheek, leaving Sasuke seething.

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As he watched Gaara battling Deidara in the skies above, Kankuro thought about Gaara's words about becoming Kazekage and how the Sand Village needed him.

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Tatsu was walking through the village with Naruto, Sasuke and Lee, going over how Naruto and Sasuke did in the battle "You guys have gotten a hell of a lot stronger, that's for sure. I never really thought you would've taken the bells."

Naruto grinned "Well what can I say, maybe I've finally surpassed you."

"Don't be ridiculous, you've got a long ways to go before you can beat me. You might be able to beat Kakashi though- Wait no, he's actually worked out this new jutsu the other day."

Naruto held his stomach "Oh crap I just remembered, I haven't had any ramen from Ichiraku since I got back."

"Now that you mention it I'm starving." Sasuke agreed.

"You guys go ahead, I'll catch up."

"Say no more, next stop Ichiraku Ramen!" Naruto took off, with Sasuke and Lee in hot pursuit.

' _The idiot's got the attention span of a squirrel.'_

"Tatsu." then Jiraiya came up with Kakashi "He's all yours again, I leave him in yours and Kakashi's capable hands as agreed."

"I give you my word, I won't let anything happen to him."

"We need to be prepared, the Akatsuki are getting ready to move again. I'm gonna head out and see what I can find out about them."

"Good luck."

"So long." then he left.

"Alright Kakashi, feel free to go read your porn."

"Will do." then Kakashi promptly left.

"Alright guys, let's move. Next stop, Ichiraku!"

"Yeah, Tatsu's paying!" Naruto cheered.

"Wait, what?"

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The battle was reaching its climax.

Deidara finished molding his clay and created a gigantic C3 bomb, preparing to drop it down on the Sand Village below.

Kankuro and the others saw this and prepared to run.

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Tatsu led the group into Ichiraku "Hey guys."

"Hey Tatsu." Teuchi waived "The usual?"

"Not this time, we're celebrating tonight! Look what we picked up over at the gate earlier."

"What?"

"Hey." Naruto waved.

"Naruto? As I live and breathe, how could I ever forget that face?"

"Been awhile hasn't it."

Then Ayame finally noticed him too "Naruto, look how much you've grown!"

"It's great seeing you guys again."

"Well what'll you have?" asked Teuchi "Still got your appetite?"

"You bet, I'm starving."

"Okay, then today your food's on the house! Order anything you want."

"You'll regret that." Tatsu warned "We're celebrating tonight, three things to celebrate actually. So then, Lee said he'd pay the bill-"

"Hold it." another figure showed up "Let me get this one. Shouldn't be surprised Naruto, I had a hunch you might be here."

Naruto looked to see Iruka poking his head in "Iruka-sensei!"

"Hold that thought guys, gotta dismiss my Shadow Clone." he looked over to his clone standing outside the shop "Thanks, you can go now."

"Sure thing." then the clone disappeared.

"Okay, like I said before we're celebrating. First up, to Naruto's comeback!"

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Gaara used a gigantic shield of sand to protect the village from Deidara's C3, only to discover that Deidara had planted small bombs in Gaara's shield when his arm was being crushed earlier, detonating on Gaara at point-blank range.

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Tatsu raised his glass "Alright guys, I say a toast to Naruto's comeback, to his promotion to jonin, and to the birth of Team Dragon!"

Everyone raised their glasses.

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Having been badly weakened by Deidara's attack, Gaara used the last of his strength to transport his sand outside the village walls before falling unconscious, allowing Deidara to capture him before making his way out with Gaara.

Kankuro chased after him with a squad, only for them to fall into a trap set by Sasori during the battle.

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Naruto opened the door to his apartment "Finally home sweet home, the old place hasn't changed a bit." he looked around "Well I guess it's bound to be a little dusty being closed up for a couple years."

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Using his new puppet Salamander, Kankuro managed to save two of the men from the trap, then went after Deidara and Sasori by himself.

Baki then ordered that word be sent to the Hidden Leaf to inform them of the situation, only for Dragon to appear and offer to take it to them, insisting that he could make it even faster than their messengers birds.

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Morning came.

Temari was about to head back to the Sand Village, when Shikamaru met her and escorted her to the gate.

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As the sun came up, Deidara and Sasori were confronted by Kankuro, and Sasori decided to take him on alone.

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Sasuke met up with Naruto, Tats and Lee "Morning guys."

"Took you long enough." Naruto grumbled.

"Sorry, but if you've got a girlfriend then you're gonna wanna spend some time with her."

"Bullshit! Tatsu, help me out here."

Tatsu said nothing, just looking off into the distance ' _I can sense Dragon's chakra rapidly approaching the village at high speed, he must be using the Flying Raijin jutsu from somewhere far away.'_

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Sasori easily stopped one of Kankuro's puppets with an iron tail, proving that he was just as dangerous as Deidara.

Kankuro knew that this wasn't going to be an easy fight, but he couldn't give up now.

He had to save Gaara, no matter the cost.

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Naruto wasn't amused about the mission he was given "Escort duty on a caravan? Come on!"

Tsunade wasn't amused "What, have you got a problem with that?"

"Since you're asking, yes! Lousy C-rank mission, it's beneath my dignity!"

' _Just as I expected, nothing's changed.'_

Mizuki let out a heavy sigh "Naruto you might've improved your skills and become a jonin but you still have the emotional maturity if a 10-year old."

"Naruto, I've chosen an easier mission to start with to break you in. You've been gone from us for awhile."

"Breaking him in will have to wait." then a masked figure in a green kimono appeared above them and dropped to the ground, landing on Naruto's back.

"Dragon, I presume?"

"You presume correct. I apologize for coming unannounced Lady Hokage, but I bring you dire news." Dragon stepped forward and handed her a scroll "The Akatsuki have made their move, and they've taken the Hidden Sand's Kazekage prisoner."

Naruto's eyes shot wide, along with everyone else "You mean Gaara? _So the Akatsuki, they're back again.'_

"We've been studying them, we know more about the Akatsuki than any other village. Therefore, the Sand Village has officially requested our help."

"May I take the lead on this?" Tatsu requested "I think one member of our squad, along with two from outside the squad. If my source, or Shika, is correct, Temari should already be on her way back. Naruto, you should take Ino, a medical ninja and combat specialist, and Kakashi, a highly skilled and experienced jonin who's actually fought the Akatsuki before, and head to the Sand Village, find out the situation, and keep us informed while you remain there and follow their orders while you give them any backup deemed necessary. Do you agree?"

"I do. Naruto, assemble Ino and Kakashi on the double and follow Tatsu's plan."

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Despite Kankuro's best efforts, Sasori dodged and deflected every attack thrown at him without getting a scratch, revealed that he created them, and then poisoned Kankuro, told him he had three days left to live, and then left him.

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Naruto stood at the gate with Ino and Kakashi "Okay, let's get going. Don't worry guys, we won't let you down."

Tsunade nodded "Good, now be careful."

"No promises."

"Naruto, good luck." said Iruka.

"Thanks. Kakashi-sensei, Ino, let's move!" and he took off, with them following ' _Hang on Gaara, we're coming!'_

Tsunade shot a look at Tatsu "What's the rest of your plan?"

"I was waiting for him to leave before I explained it." Tatsu told her "My plan is for me, Sasuke and Lee to join up with them and act as a backup squad, but only after Neji returns from his mission so we can use his Byakugan to detect any traps before they're activated."

"I see. Not bad at all, you're different from that hot-headed little runt who charged in with me to fight Orochimaru."

"I'm still the same, I'm just growing up."

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As the Sand ninja were taking care of the traps that Sasori set up, Kankuro had been brought back, but was in bad shape.

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Naruto was racing ahead ' _We're coming Gaara.'_

"Naruto, I know you're in a hurry but you shouldn't break formation." Ino told him.

"I know, but…"

"Don't lose your cool, master Jiraiya taught you better than that didn't he?" Kakashi scolded.

"Hold on, is that…" Ino looked and saw Temari down below them "Temari!"

Hearing a voice, Temari looked and saw them drop down "You guys."

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Kankuro was quickly being treated, with the medics trying to find an antidote.

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Temari froze "Gaara? You mean he's been-"

"Yes." Ino confirmed.

' _I should've known something was wrong.'_

"We're 2 ½ days out from the sand, we should hurry." Kakashi told her.

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Kankuro was still suffering from the poison.

The medics couldn't find an antidote since they'd never seen it before.

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Nightfall came.

Ino was having enough of Naruto rushing ahead "Naruto slow down and stop rushing ahead, we can't keep up with you."

"I can't take this anymore!" Naruto snarled "I know why they're after Gaara and me, it's not like it's a mystery or anything. You know too, don't you Ino? I know Tatsu and the others told you already. There's no point in hiding it, the spirit of the Kyuubi is sealed away inside of me."

Temari's eyes shot wide.

Naruto gripped his stomach "Gaara and I are the same, we both have monsters locked up inside of us. That's what these bastards are after. That's the worst part about it, to them we're just monsters, all those bastards see is the means to an end! Everything about us was exactly the same, and he had to fend for himself a lot longer than I ever did, and now he's a target for the Akatsuki! One more thing we have in common, why should his life be so full of misery all the time? Why is it always him? That's why I've gotta hurry, I don't have a second to waste! This time will be different, I'm gonna be there to save him!"

Temari stared at him, feeling his tears drop onto her face ' _Naruto Uzumaki… thank you…'_

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Baki learned from a weakened Kankuro that Sasori, who happened to be a famous rogue ninja from the Sand, was involved, and decided to go to the two elders of the village.

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The group continued toward the Sand.

Kakashi watched Ino taking a food pellet "You know those food pellets are only for emergencies, and a girl at your age should especially be careful-"

"I'm fine." Ino ground out, then harshly bit down on one and went ahead.

"Is she mad at me?"

Temari rolled her eyes "You ever heard of sexual harassment old man?"

Ino slowed down at Naruto's side "Naruto."

"What is it?" asked Naruto.

"So tell me, you've met them before haven't you? Itachi Uchiha, I mean. He's after you now, isn't he? It's not like I just spent my time training these past few years. I went to Tatsu and the others and got as much information as I could, and the one thing that constantly bothered me more than anything else finally makes sense. The person that Sasuke wants to kill, it's his older brother Itachi isn't it? Now he's a member of the Akatsuki. That's the main plan Orochimaru wanted to use to get Sasuke, he was planning to use a Curse Mark to warp his mind and make Sasuke see him as a way to obtain power. But all that worthless pedophile cares about is getting Sasuke's body and there's only six months before it happens so we've gotta find a way to stop him before then."

"So Tatsu and the rest told you about that too."

"But Orochimaru used to be a member of the Akatsuki himself, all I'm trying to say is that we can't give up. The closer we get to the Akatsuki, the closer we get to finding information about Orochimaru, and maybe even how to stop him." she gripped her fist ' _Itachi's been tormenting both Tatsu and Sasuke for too long, and now Naruto as well? This time it's going to be my turn to save them.'_

Naruto stared at her for a moment ' _Ino…'_

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Baki informed the Sand Village elders, Chiyo and Ebizo, about Gaara being taken prisoner and how Chiyo's grandson was a member of the Akatsuki.

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Kakashi woke up Temari and Ino "Alright, break time's over."

Ino noticed something off "Kakashi-sensei, where's Naruto."

"Right up there." Kakashi pointed up.

In the trees above, Naruto stared out at the landscape ' _One more day until we reach the Sand Village, we have to hurry.'_

"Naruto, we're moving again."

"Right."

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Kankuro's condition was getting worse, and nothing Chiyo came up with was doing any good against Sasori's poison.

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Naruto breathed a sigh of relief "Finally, we reached the desert."

"The Hidden Sand is just up ahead." Temari told him "It's best if I take the lead from here on out."

Kakashi nodded "Lead on."

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Deidara and Sasori arrived at one of the hideouts for the Akatsuki.

Their leader greeted them and uses astral projection to summon the Gedo Statue, with all of the other members, including Itachi and Kisame, also using astral projection so they could extract Shukaku from within Gaara and seal it within the Gedo Statue using their Sealing Jutsu: Nine Phantom Dragons.

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Shizune rushed in "Lady Tsunade, did you call me?"

Tsunade nodded "Yes, we have to send reinforcements to the Sand Village at once."

"I get what you're getting at." Tatsu appeared in the window "I can sense it, they're back right now."

"We have to be ready for a worst-case scenario."

"Don't worry, it'll be fine."

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Tsunade stood before Tatsu, Lee, Neji and Sasuke at the gate "I'm assigning you essentially the same mission as Kakashi's group, get to the Sand Village as fast as possible and provide any support necessary."

Tatsu nodded "I give you my word, we're on it."

"Good."

"Come on guys, we're moving full speed right from the get go. Let's move!" and he took off, with Lee and Sasuke following.

Neji let out a loud sigh "It's Guy-sensei all over again." and yet he still took off after them at full speed "I haven't seen Naruto for a long time, I'm curious to see how much he's changed."

"He's gotten a hell of a lot stronger." Tatsu told him "He and Sasuke double-teamed me and they almost beat me."

"Beating you isn't an easy task, word is you're stronger than Kakashi now."

"My point exactly."

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Naruto wasn't amused about his group hiding in a cave "We got this close to our target and we're just sitting here! I can't stand this waiting!"

"Naruto." Kakashi put a hand on his shoulder to stop him "For the last time relax, there's nothing we can do."

"I know, but…"

"You have to be patient." Ino told him "Look at Temari, she's more worried than any of us are."

"The cardinal rule of travelling in the desert, if you hit a sandstorm you stay put. You lose all your sense of direction in a storm like that." Temari told them "I've heard of many people who ended up lost in the desert and dying of thirst. Don't worry, the sandstorms we get this time of year usually don't last very long."

"I just hope you're right."

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Morning came.

Two guards were outside the gates to the Sand, waiting for the Leaf group's arrival.

"If they left once they got word and moved quickly then they could be here any minute."

"Don't count on it, even one of our own people would've had a hard time with that sandstorm."

Then the first guy noticed something "Look, over there!"

The second looked and saw Naruto's group appear before them.

"We've been expecting you."

"Lady Temari, you were with them?"

"Please, right this way." they led them inside and explained the situation.

Temari nearly freaked once she heard "What, you say they got Kankuro as well?!"

"Yes, when the enemy took lord Kazekage Kankuro went after them by himself. He was poisoned, and we haven't been able to find anything to counteract it. He won't last much longer."

"Dammit!"

"Temari, you can't give up yet." Ino told her "Let me take a look at him, I don't know if I'll be much help but I at least have to try."

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"Kankuro!" Temari's group rushed into the infirmary.

Chiyo froze when she saw Kakashi ' _Him, the White Fang of the Leaf!_ Damn you!" she charged in a rage "Get ready to defend yourself or die! Revenge at last!"

Naruto blitzed in front of her and caught one hand and one foot "Look lady I don't know what this is about but if you just give Kakashi-sensei a chance I'm sure he'll gladly apologize for sexually harassing you."

"WHAT?!" Kakashi blurted out "Hold on a second Naruto, I never-"

"SILENCE!" Chiyo roared "I haven't forgotten what you did, I've waited for this day White Fang of the Leaf, the day I wreak vengeance on you for what you did to my son!"

"No no no, you see I'm not-"

"That's enough talk!" Chiyo was about to charge in.

That is, before Ebizo stopped her "Take a closer look at the man sis, it's true that there's a resemblance but this one is not the White Fang. Besides, as you know the White Fang of the Leaf died long ago. Remember? When you heard the news you wept in frustration because it meant you would never have your vengeance. Isn't that so, sis?"

Chiyo stared intently for a moment, then grinned "Oh well, never mind!"

Naruto wasn't so willing to let it go "Listen you little-" he was cut off by a blood-curdling scream from Kankuro "Oh yeah."

"Here, let me take a look at him." Ino tied all of her hair back "Listen, it might help if you all clear out and give us some room."

"You got it, just do your best." and they left.

Chiyo stared at Ino with disdain for a moment, but still left.

Ino checked his eyes and mouth, then his chest "We're definitely dealing with a heavy metal-based toxin, the kind that attacks muscle tissue, destroying the cells integrity."

The medics were surprised "You were able to learn all that in one look?"

"May I see his chart?"

"Yes of course." he handed it to her "We were getting a breakdown of the poison, but there are still quite a few blanks."

Ino studied the chart "I know just what will happen. The cardiac muscle will be weakened to the point where the heart will collapse and cease functioning altogether. It's doubtful we'll be able to come up with an antidote in time."

Temari quickly got frantic "What are you saying? There's nothing you can do?"

"I never said that." Ino turned to the other medics "I'll need a few things, and quickly. This will be pretty crude but it's the only option we have right now."

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The seal jutsu began to work, as Shukaku's power was slowly being extracted from Gaara's body.

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Ino placed her hand in a tub of medicinal fluid "Hold him down and make sure he can't move, this part of the procedure is one of the hardest."

"Got it." they held him down.

"Alright, here goes." Ino formed a bubble of the medicinal fluid and placed it on Kankuro's chest, causing him to squirm around in pain as she drew out as much poison as she could, only for that one bubble to not be enough, and she placed it back in the tub "Another."

"Right." they brought over another tub.

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Kakashi looked up from his book and saw Naruto meditating ' _Probably meeting with Tatsu in Limbo thanks to the time dilation.'_

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Naruto entered Limbo "Hey Tatsu, you here?"

"Cool it, I'm here." Tatsu appeared before him "How's everything in the Sand?"

"Not great so far. Kankuro's poisoned, Ino's trying to heal him, and Kakashi-sensei got attacked by some crazy old bat that thought he was the White Fang of the Leaf. Who the hell is this guy anyway?"

"That's actually funny, see the White Fang of the Leaf's true name was Sakumo Hatake."

"Wait, you mean-"

"Yep, he was Kakashi's father."

"Damn. Was he strong?"

"Of course he was, he was in a genin team with my father and Sasuke's mother under Lady Tsunade herself, and the White Fang was praised for being stronger than even the Sannin." then he turned serious "Now then, onto important matters. How have you progressed during your training with Master Jiraiya?"

"Well I've got the Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu down so that it takes up way less chakra than it did, I learned a couple of wind style jutsu, I found out I can use water style and learned a few jutsu, and I've been training with controlling Kurama's chakra so that now I can control up to three tails without any drawbacks."

"Good." Tatsu got into a stance "You wanna put all that to the test?"

"Gladly!" Naruto formed hand seals " **Wind Style: Great Breach!"** he fired a blast of wind, beginning the battle.

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Ino was on another bubble of medicinal fluid, trying to extract as much of the poison from Kankuro's system as she could, before she finally stopped and sighed "I've removed most of the poison, that should keep him out of any immediate danger."

The medics were amazed, Baki was relieved, and Temari slumped against a wall ' _Thank goodness.'_

"But he's not completely out of the woods yet, I need to hurry and put together an antidote for the traces of toxin still remaining in his body."

"I see. Anything you need, don't hesitate to ask."

"Well first I need a list of all the medicinal herbs you have in this village."

"Yes, at once."

"And we should change these bandages and replace them with clean ones."

"Yes ma'am."

"I'll need an IV drip set up stat."

"Got it."

"And be sure to set aside a small amount of the toxin I extracted, I'll need it later."

"Right."

Once they were doing what she asked, Ino put her hair back in its normal style ' _Finally, the old girl can breathe a little.'_

That was when Chiyo came up to her "You remind me of the old Slug Queen Tsunade, isn't it strange that you'd turn up in our village like this?"

"Well she is my teacher and it was on her order that I personally came here, so that should tell you something."

"Here's that list of medicinal herbs." one medic handed her the list of herbs.

"Thank you."

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Tatsu was panting slightly "You and Sasuke are a deadly combination, but you've got a little ways to go by yourself before you can beat me."

Naruto was panting somewhat more with noticeable cuts "Well it's not like I was going all out."

"Me either, if I did go all out you'd probably be dead. Anyway, you'd better head back and see how things are going."

"Right."

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Naruto exited his meditation "What'd I miss?"

"This." Kakashi sat back down beside him with a scroll "Ino finished extracting the poison and now she's working on an antidote. We got a message from Lady Hokage saying that Tatsu, Lee, Sasuke and Neji are on their way here to back us up."

"Yeah I was just talking to Tatsu in Limbo. Well I say there's no point in waiting for them to get here, let's go after the Akatsuki right now!"

"Hold it stupid." Kakashi held out an arm in front of him "Think for a minute, do you even know where they are?"

"...So have the Sand ninja had any luck in tracking Gaara?"

"Well first Kankuro went after them by himself and look how that turned out. They dispatched a Tracking Unit in pursuit but they haven't heard back. And they believe that a member of their Council of Advisors, is missing. Basically, they've completely lost track of the Akatsuki."

"Excuse me." Baki came out "Kankuro has regained consciousness."

"Right." they followed him in.

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Kankuro looked around ' _Wha-?'_

"Kankuro." Temari came into his line of vision "Are you alright?"

"Temari… you're back already?"

"I heard the village was in trouble."

"I'm sorry… to be such a bother…"

"Shut up, don't be ridiculous."

Kakashi looked at Baki "Can you lead me to where Kankuro's fight with the Akatsuki took place? I'm known for having a pretty good nose, if even the slightest trace of their scent remains on the scene-"

"There's no need for that." Kankuro rasped out "Where are my puppets? I assume that my puppets were recovered, right?"

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Ino was hard at work on an antidote "I never imagined I'd find such a wide variety of medicinal herbs here in the Hidden Sand."

"We try." a medic told her "Our soil's not well-suited to growing them. We can't grow much scurvy grass for example."

"That's alright, there's enough. I can make 3 doses of antidote."

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Kankuro looked at the remains of his puppets, then back to Kakashi "One fought with me while the other carried Gaara away. You might be able to find Gaara's scent, but you can definitely track the one I fought. I made sure of it. See, I've got his scent right here." he picked up a piece of Crow, revealing a small piece of cloth "The last thing I did was make sure I got a scrap of his clothing."

Kakashi examined the cloth "Even in defeat you went down fighting, just what I'd expect from a Sand shinobi."

Kankuro chuckled, then winced and groaned.

"Kankuro, what is it?" Temari was by his side.

Kankuro stared at Naruto for a moment.

"Yes, he came all the way from the Leaf Village to help us."

"Is that… Naruto Uzumaki?"

"Hey." Naruto waved.

"I see."

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" **Summoning Jutsu!"** Kakashi slammed his hand into the ground.

In a puff of smoke, Kakashi's ninja hounds, led by Pakkun, appeared "At your service, eight ninja hounds."

Naruto grinned "Hey Pakkun!"

"That you Naruto? Long time no see."

"Look at you, you haven't changed a bit."

"You haven't either."

"What're you talking about? I'm a lot taller for one thing."

"Don't screw with me-"

"Alright alright, let's skip the reunion." Kakashi cut in "I need you guys to get on this right away."

Pakkun had the other dogs sniff it.

"Find out which way he went, okay? Go on."

They scattered.

"Okay." Naruto decided "We move out as soon as Pakkun and his posse get back, so I say we start getting ready."

"Again, hold it." Kakashi stopped him.

Chiyo came into the room, with Ebizo right behind her "Kankuro."

"Lady Chiyo, and Lord Ebizo? You're here?" Kankuro's eyes shot wide.

"There's something we must know and only you can tell us. Am I correct in thinking one of your opponents, the one you fought was Sasori?"

"Yes, Sasori of the Red Sand. He told me so himself."

"I see."

"Sasori of the Red Sand?" Kakashi cut in "I get the feeling you know something about these Akatsuki. Will you tell us?"

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Ino tested out the antidote she made "It worked. It's ready."

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Ino was helping Kankuro drink down the antidote "That's right, drink it all." she helped him get down the last of it "There, you should be alright now. Just lay back and rest, and don't move around until the numbness passes."

"All of you are going to need rest as well after your journey." Baki told them "We've prepared rooms for you."

Kakashi held a hand over Naruto's mouth "Thanks, we'll take you up on your offer. We may have to travel far and fast tomorrow."

Naruto looked down, but conceded "Alright, you win."

Kankuro slowly lifted up his arm, unable to clench his fist, then spoke "Naruto…"

"What's up?"

"Save my little brother, will you?" he got surprised looks from Temari and Baki.

"Don't worry, I will. After all, I'm gonna be Hokage someday so for now the Kazekage can just owe me one." Naruto gave a thumbs up.

 **A/N:**

 **For the record, the whole Team Dragon thing should've been explained in the summary so I'm not answering any questions about that.**

 **I gave Naruto the ability to use a Rasengan without a Shadow Clone for a very simple reason. While the Shadow Clone thing was clever in Part I, by Part II it just became redundant.**

 **Why did I give Naruto water style? Why not?**


	4. Akatsuki Encounters, Battle Begins

The process of extracting Shukaku from within Gaara and sealing it within the Gedo Statue was continuing, while Pakkun found their hideout after travelling all night before going back to report back to Kakashi.

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Morning came.

Pakkun pressed his paw down on a certain part of a map "Here."

Kakashi studied that part of the map intently "You're sure that's where their hideout is?"

"It seems more than likely since Gaara's scent was coming from there as well."

"I see. I've got one more favor to ask of you."

"And what'd that be?"

Naruto rolled out of bed and onto the floor "Ow…"

"Oh Naruto, you're up."

"Oh hey Pakkun."

"How goes it?"

"Alright Pakkun, get moving." Kakashi instructed.

"I'll see you around Naruto." and Pakkun raced off.

"There he goes."

"Kakashi-sensei, does this mean we found where the Akatsuki are hiding out?" asked Naruto.

"Yep, get ready cause we're moving out."

"Right."

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Temari overheard the situation from another Sand ninja and ordered for a pursuit squad to be put together.

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Kakashi explained the situation to Naruto and Ino "Seems we'll be working in conjunction with a squad from the Sand Village, as soon as they're here we'll head out."

Then Temari showed up with a squad "Sorry to keep you waiting."

"Well if that's everybody…"

"Alright." Naruto started stretching "There's no time to waste, let's get this show on the road."

"Wait." then Baki showed up "Temari, you and your group are to stay here and patrol the perimeter."

Understandably, Temari was pissed "Are you kidding me or what?"

"Orders from above, if word gets out that the Kazekage is missing then our enemies may use it as an opportunity to launch an attack on the village."

"Don't you get it? That's all the more reason we have to get him back as quickly as we can! Look at these Leaf ninja, they left their village and came all the way here just to help us rescue Gaara! And Gaara's not even their leader, he's _our_ Kazekage! The Sand shinobi should be the ones to save him!"

"I'm sorry."

"Well I'm going!" a new voice thundered from above "If a Sand shinobi is needed then I'm the one to go!"

Baki and the rest looked up to see Chiyo standing above them "Lady Chiyo? But you're so…"

"I'm retired yes, which means of course that I'm free to do whatever I want."

"Yes but the journey will be difficult."

"Don't treat me like a fossil!" Chiyo leapt down to the ground "After all, it's been awhile since I doted on my adorable grandchild."

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The extraction process continued, with Gaara letting out a long groan of pain.

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Kakashi stood at the gate with the rest "Alright, we'll head out on our own then."

"Thank you, I'll try to convince the council to change their mind." Baki told him.

"Don't worry, we'll catch up with you." Temari assured them.

Naruto smirked "By the time you catch up with us, we'll have already rescued Gaara." and they took off.

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Tatsu continued leading his group through the forest "Come on guys, we've gotta hurry and back up Naruto and the rest."

"Tatsu, up ahead!" Neji called.

"Hold it!" Tatsu stopped and held out an arm.

Then Pakkun showed up "Hey Tatsu, hold up."

"Hey Pakkun, how's it going?"

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Ino and the others were heading through the forest "Hey Naruto, can I ask you a question?"

"What is it?" asked Naruto.

"Well… how long do you think the Akatsuki have been after you?"

Naruto's eyes widened, and he thought back to Itachi and Kisame "I don't know…"

"Two members of the Akatsuki came to the Leaf looking for Naruto once." Kakashi told her, his tone grim "It's been three years since then, and no sign of them. Now they're back."

"But why did they wait so long to make another move?" asked Ino.

"It could be that they wanted to act before this but for some reason they couldn't. Maybe because Dragon and Master Jiraiya around and they didn't want to face them."

"That's not it." Chiyo cut in "From what I heard, there was an entirely different reason they had to wait this long."

"What reason?" asked Naruto.

"If you're going to try and draw out the Tailed Beasts that dwells within then a great deal of preparation is involved, they just needed some more time."

"What are you talking about?" asked Ino "What Tailed Beast?"

"My my, you're a student of that old Slug Queen Tsunade and you don't even know that when the Leaf itself is host to the Kyuubi?"

"The Kyuubi isn't something we talk about." Kakashi's voice was deadly serious "It's considered top secret."

"Really? Well not surprising I guess. Tailed Beasts are demon spirits with one or more tails. The Sand have had a single Tailed Beast since long ago, that's the Shukaku sealed within Gaara."

"So then, there's more of these demon spirits?" asked Ino hesitantly.

"Oh yes, there are a total of 9 of them in the world, each with distinct characteristics and each with a different number of tails. The demon beast of the sand with a single tail, a two-tailed spirit, three-tailed and so on, all the way up to the Kyuubi, or nine-tails. The beasts are huge concentrations of chakra, and during the great war every nation competed for control of them for military purposes. They fought relentlessly over them, but the Tailed Beasts' powers were beyond human imagining. No one could control them. I don't know the intentions of the Akatsuki, but that kind of power is far too dangerous for anyone to get ahold of. Eventually with a coming of peace, the Tailed Beasts were forgotten, but nevertheless they still exist all 9 of them scattered over the world."

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Pakkun explained the situation to Tatsu's team "Kakashi sent eight of us ninja hounds out to scatter the countryside and try to pick up the Akatsuki's scent."

"And what'd you find?" asked Tatsu.

"Well we soon discovered that they were heading for the Land of Rivers bordering the Leaf and Sand."

"Land of Rivers?"

"That's right, and since your squad is on its way from the Leaf to the Sand I guess this is your lucky day since you're the closest if you can call it lucky that is."

"Alright then."

"I'll show you the way, follow me and I'll explain the rest as we go."

"You heard him guys, let's move!" and they took off.

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Unknown to them, a member of the Akatsuki by the name of Zetsu had been watching them and informed the leader and the rest.

While Itachi perked up unnoticeably when Sasuke was mentioned, Kisame was eager to offer to delay them when he heard Lee was with them, wanting to pay him back for the drop kick he suffered that day, even if he was just a kid back then.

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As he guided the team through a desert area, Pakkun took a whiff "Oh boy."

"What is it?" asked Sasuke.

"Someone's coming."

"Yeah, I sense a chakra closing in." Tatsu looked back ' _Familiar and extremely powerful chakra, bad JAWS impression._ Lee, this is your guy."

"Is it him?" asked Lee ' _I really hope it's him.'_

"Oh yeah it's him."

"Perfect." Lee stopped running first, skidding to a halt "Guys stay back, I'm taking this one on myself."

The ground burst from under in front of them, revealing Kisame with his Samehada (Another name for Shark Skin) "It's been awhile, I still owe you for that kick you gave me."

"Wait a minute…"

"Oh good, so you remember me."

' _Now to mess with him._ Who are you?"

Kisame felt the vein in his forehead throbbing.

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Zetsu also spotted Naruto and Kakashi's group heading their way, and anyone wanna guess who went this time?

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"Everybody stop!" Kakashi stopped them in a clearing when he saw the one front of them ' _So soon?'_

Naruto let out a low snarl "I know you…"

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Neji observed Kisame with his Byakugan and his eyes shot wide "Unreal, his chakra level is off the charts! I've never seen anyone but Naruto with that much chakra."

Sasuke shot Neji an incredulous look "That much?"

Kisame shot Lee a smirk "Your memory is as bad as your haircut."

' _Now to keep screwing with him.'_ Lee's eyes shot wide "Can it be that you're…?"

"You've finally remembered have you?"

"We've met somewhere before?"

"...It's no wonder you're called a beast, your intelligence is certainly subhuman. Well don't worry, I'll refresh your memory soon enough."

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Naruto glared at the one in front of them "Itachi… Uchiha…"

Itachi remained stoic "Kakashi, Naruto, it's been awhile."

"I wasn't enough for you huh? Now you had to go after Gaara as well? I'll destroy every last one of you!"

Itachi raised a hand "Is that so?"

Kakashi held out a hand in front of them "Everyone, whatever you do don't look him in the eyes!"

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Neji studied Kisame "So he's an Akatsuki."

Kisame threw Samehada into the air and formed hand seals " **Water Style: Exploding Water Shockwave!"** a massive blast of water escaped from his mouth, turning the area into an ocean-like terrain, then caught Samehada "Ready or not, here I come!"

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"Itachi's genjutsu is a visual jutsu." explained Kakashi "Avoid eye contact with him and his jutsu can't take effect."

"I know that." Naruto muttered "And besides, Kurama can break me out of any genjutsu. But how are the rest supposed to fight him?"

"That's the tricky part."

"Bushy Brown told me that the way he was planning to fight Itachi by anticipating his moves by watching his feet."

"Guy told me the same thing."

Ino was having a hard time watching Itachi and his feet at the same time "But that's like fighting with one arm tied behind your back."

"The Uchiha clan eh?" Chiyo muttered "It's been a long time since I've gone up against the Sharingan."

Naruto's head snapped towards her "What?"

"Don't look so surprised, I've been around and I know there's more than one way to fight a visual jutsu like that."

"Like what?"

"If one against one then abandon the field, if two against one then take the rear and he'll yield."

"What's that mean?"

"Well the first part of it is pretty self-explanatory isn't it? The Sharingan can never be beaten in single combat, but if you outnumber the Sharingan user, if the battle is two against one then even if one of you is caught in his genjutsu the other is free to strike from the rear breaking the genjutsu spell. Even if your attack from the rear should fail somehow, you're still free to strike your comrade yourself and break the genjutsu that way. So while one of us fights face to face as a distraction, the rest of us will mount a series of attacks from the rear where his Sharingan can't reach."

"I guess you learn a lot of stuff like that if you live long enough. Anyway, I'll take the rear."

"Hold it." Kakashi stopped him.

"What?"

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"Here I come!" Kisame charged forward with his massive wave.

"Move!" Lee and the rest leapt up to dodge it.

Kisame appeared and launched another wave from behind.

Lee and Sasuke leapt up, but saw that Tatsu and Neji didn't "Guys move!"

"How about it? You like it so far?" Kisame brought the wave down again, repeatedly crashing it back and forth.

Lee stared hard at Kisame "Wait…"

"So, you remember me now?"

"Where the hell is all this water coming from?" Sasuke muttered.

"A technique like this requires a huge amount of chakra." Neji told him "An incredible amount."

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"Okay sensei, what are we waiting _for_ exactly?" asked Naruto.

Chiyo eyed him "Do you have a problem with my way of fighting the Sharingan? Are you suggesting my methods won't work?"

"No, they work fine against ordinary genjutsu." Kakashi told her "But what we're dealing with here is something much more complicated."

"Meaning what?"

"He uses the Mangekyo Sharingan, it's far more powerful than any other visual jutsu. It only takes a second, but if he hits you with that jutsu then it'll be the longest second you've ever lived. Time itself gets warped, what seems like a second in the real world can be hours or days to someone trapped in his jutsu. I know, I wandered around in it for three days and lost consciousness for more than a week. It's not a genjutsu that can be broken just like that."

"That _does_ sound tricky, what a troublesome fellow this is."

"Very good Kakashi, I see your sojen in my Tsukuyomi wasn't wasted." Itachi noted.

"Oh believe me I learned something else as well." Kakashi told him "There's a price to pay for using that Sharingan,, it exhausted you didn't it? You had to quit before the battle was over, so in addition to using up a lot of chakra, you risk permanent damage to your eye every time you use that jutsu don't you Itachi?"

"You seem to have learned a great deal from out one brief encounter."

"I wonder just how much damage has already been done to your eyesight." Kakashi lifted up his headband, revealing his Sharingan eye."

Itachi's eyes widened briefly "Kakashi, could it be that you…?"

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Sasuke looked around the watery battlefield "Where do you think he is?"

"Don't know." Tatsu admitted "He's suppressing his chakra, I can't sense him." then he saw a large wave appear in front of them "Move!"

"Here I come!" Kisame charged towards Lee.

"I don't think so!" Lee kicked Kisame in the face, causing him to dissolve into water "So it was only a Water Clone."

The real Kisame appeared from the water "Then I guess you'll never get the chance to remember me." he drew Samehada from his back and brought it down.

Lee dodged a few swings "Sasuke!"

"On it! **Rising Hawk Kick!"** Sasuke blitzed to Kisame's side and kicked him in the arm, knocking Samehada out of Kisame's hand.

" **Eight Trigrams Air Palm!"** Neji sent Kisame flying with a blast of air.

' _Dammit!'_ Kisame stopped himself with Samehada, then used it block a kunai, only to see something on it ' _A paper bomb!'_ he got hit in the explosion, but escaped underwater.

"Damn." Tatsu swore "He got away."

"I told you that you using a paper bomb was way too anticlimactic." Sasuke pointed out.

"Oh shut up." Tatsu paused "He's in front of us and closing in fast."

Then a pissed off Kisame emerged "I'll grant you brats this much, you're more trouble than I thought you'd be. Though I suppose I should expect as much from Itachi's younger brother."

Lee decided to mess with Kisame a little more "Wait, the water jutsu and the massive bandaged sword. Are you…?"

"Don't tell me your memory is finally stirring in that tiny brain of yours."

"I feel certain we've met before."

' _Is this idiot for real?!'_

This got worse when Tatsu decided to jump in "I think this guy would be pretty memorable Lee."

"Listen to that, even your own followers are beginning to wonder if you can remember anything. Well let's what we can do, enough pain and maybe then you'll remember."

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Kakashi engaged in a brief staredown with Itachi "I underestimated you back then, I admit it. But I'm NOT the fool I used to be. Things aren't gonna go the same way this time, I promise you that."

Naruto smirked "Yeah and don't go thinking I'm the same kid either, a lot of things have changed since then."

"Naruto, leave him to me."

' _This is just like the last time, back with Zabuza in the Land of Waves._ Not again, not that kind of teamwork where we sit back and do nothing!"

"No, this time you cover me. I wish I could tell you guys to go on ahead and that I could handle this alone, but I never make the same mistake twice."

"Works for me, I've been wanting to try something out anyway."

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Kisame smirked "Let's see now."

"Alright, time for a counterattack." Lee decided "Tatsu, let me take the lead on this. I'll go in against him first, as soon as his guard is down you move in."

"Are you fool enough to think you can get me to lower my guard that easily? I won't try to talk you out of it, I'll let you learn the hard way!" Kisame charged in.

Lee leapt over Samehada.

"Is that it?"

" **Gentle Fist!"** Neji thrusted a palm forward.

Kisame blocked it with Samehada, then stopped an attack from Sasuke.

' _He's got a point.'_ Sasuke realized ' _He swings that huge sword so easily that it's almost impossible to get through his guard.'_

"Close range might not work, but what about this?" Tatsu formed some hand seals " **Fire Style: Crimson Dragon!"** he breathed out a fire dragon.

Kisame blocked it with Samehada "I missed it, did you do something?"

"...And I thought my sword could piss people off."

Lee came to a realization "Of course, the sword!"

Kisame smirked "Now, do we remember at last?"

"That weapon, it's yours right?"

"Whose else could it be?" Neji pointed out.

"There's a big difference between knowing and being absolutely certain."

Kisame was losing interest "I said you had the intelligence of a subhuman beast, but a beast could run circles around your brain."

"Let's go! **Dynamic Action!"** Lee charged in.

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Itachi finally made a move, raising his hand "It's time you came with me, Naruto." he pointed a finger.

"Me first!" Kakashi charged in.

Itachi blocked it, and a second one charged.

"A Shadow Clone!"

"I've got it!" Naruto formed hand seals " **Water Style: Raging Wave!"** he shot a blast of water from his mouth, sending Itachi tumbling back, only to disappear in a puff of smoke "Another Shadow Clone." he looked and saw the others all down "Ino, granny, Kakashi-sensei!"

They all stood and transformed into clones of Itachi himself, to Naruto's shock and confusion.

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Things were getting serious on the other front.

Kisame blocked several attacks from Lee "Is that all?"

"No, but this is!" Lee kicked Kisame's hand and broke his grip on Samehada "Now!"

"Right!" Tatsu, Neji and Sasuke all leapt in for an attack.

" **Water Clone Jutsu!"** Kisame summoned three Water Clones.

"Guys!" Lee charged in.

" **Water Prison Jutsu!"** each of the clones trapped one of them in a water prison.

"Leave them alone you swine!" Lee charged and prepared to bring down Samehada, only for the handle to produce spikes that forced him to let go, leaving his hands bleeding, and looked at his trapped comrades "Tatsu! Neji! Sasuke!"

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Naruto stared at the Itachi clones in front of him "Genjutsu. _Kurama!'_

" **Right."** Kurama prepared to use his chakra to release Naruto from Itachi's genjutsu.

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Kisame looked back at Tatsu and the others, then at Lee and grinned "I've gotta admit, I'm a little surprised. You kids are better than I thought. At any rate, now we can fight without any interference."

Lee got into a taijutsu stance ' _I've gotta hurry, who knows how long they'll last.'_

Kisame quickly retrieved Samehada from the waters "This is the mighty blade Samehada, and it only allows me to wield it."

"Perhaps messing with a weapon I was unfamiliar with was a bad idea. Well if that's the case then maybe I should stick to what I'm familiar with." he pulled out a pair of nunchaku.

"Well well well, this is going to be interesting. Now then, what do you say we finally get down to business!" Kisame charged in.

Lee promptly slammed down his nunchaku.

Kisame blocked it with his Samehada, then dodged several other swings.

When his nunchaku failed, Lee prepared to bring down his leg, only for spikes to stick out from the bandages of Samehada, forcing him to stop. He then broke away and started running along the water.

Kisame followed his lead, then summoned a Water Clone.

Lee promptly destroyed it with one whack of his nunchaku, only to be pushed back by a slash from Kisame and Samehada. He looked over to the rest ' _I don't know how much longer the others will be able to hold out.'_

Kisame threw Samehada into the air, formed hand seals, and slammed his hand down onto the watery surface " **Water Style: Water Shark Bomb Jutsu!"** he shot out a giant water shark.

Lee was able to cut through it with his nunchaku, then barely blocked a blow from Samehada, but just barely ' _His power is unbelievable!_ Hold on, I know you!"

"So you finally remembered? Too little too late!" he punched Lee in the gut, sending him underwater.

Lee clutched the minor wound in his chest ' _Okay, fun as it may be, pretending not to remember this guy to piss him off might not be the best idea.'_

"I'm not done settling the score just yet, not by a long shot." Kisame formed a hand seal and slammed his hand down on the water " **Water Style: Five Hungry Sharks!"** he shot five water sharks down to the bottom of the water from his fingertips "Here's the first meal."

Lee was forced to swim out of the way to avoid the first shark.

"Second meal."

He got grazed by the second shark.

"Third meal."

Lee was caught in the mouth of the third shark, but promptly punched it in the mouth in order to escape, only for it to come back for more ' _No effect?'_

"The fourth meal."

Lee got his from behind by the fourth shark, drawing blood and sending him sinking to the watery floor below him.

"Fifth meal."

Lee hit the ground, and the five sharks converged on him. He tried to fight his way out, but they kept regenerating.

"My little friends are hungry, they'll devour every last piece of you right down to the bone."

' _I'm running out of time, who knows how long.'_ Lee got into a stance.

"What's he up to down there?"

' _ **Eight Inner Gates. First Gate: Gate of Opening: Open.'**_ he opened the first gate ' _ **Second Gate: Gate of Rest: Open.'**_ veins bulged ' _ **Third Gate: Gate of Life: Open.'**_ skin turned red ' _ **Fourth Gate: Gate of Pain: Open.'**_

"What the hell is this? How is he able to recuperate so quickly?"

' _ **Fifth Gate: Gate of Closing: Open.'**_ green vapor began emerging from his body, causing the sharks to evaporate and the water to fly upwards in massive pillars.

"What?!"

" **Eight Inner Gates: Sixth Gate of Joy: OPEN!"** Lee entered the sixth gate, completely destroying whatever remained of the water sharks and pushing away the water around him, allowing him to breathe.

"What in the hell?" Kisame leapt back onto the water pillars.

Lee appeared right in front of him "What's wrong?"

Kisame leapt up the water pillars.

Lee followed him, causing the water pillars to disperse, and took a stance in mid-air.

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Naruto found himself back on the battlefield, Chino and Ino on either side of him ' _Good, it worked.'_

Kakashi broke away from Itachi after a brief scuffle "Naruto, are you alright?"

"Yeah sorry, just got caught in his genjutsu."

"I'm afraid he's using more than just a visual jutsu." Chiyo muttered.

"I think it's about time for the main event, better get it together Naruto." Kakashi warned.

Naruto nodded "Right."

"Come on, I'll show you how it's done." Kakashi charged.

Itachi formed several hand seals " **Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu."** he fired several small balls of fire."

Kakashi dodged all of them and leapt into the air, then turned to the others "He's not done yet!"

" **Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"** Itachi breathed out a fireball.

" **Water Style: Raging Waves!"** Naruto breathed a blast of water from his mouth that met the fire head on, resulting in a massive cloud of steam.

' _So he's learned water style. He's grown these past three years.'_

When the steam subsided, Kakashi stood in place of Naruto and the others, electricity crackling in his hands " **Lightning Blade!"** he charged and drove the attack forward.

Itachi dodged it, then looked up.

" **Rasengan!"** Naruto appeared above him and slammed him with a Rasengan to the gut, driving him into the ground.

When the dust settled, Itachi stood unharmed, and Naruto was nowhere in sight "Well now, he's learned interesting jutsu hasn't he? However…" he looked over to a tree on his right where the real Naruto was hiding ' _I suppose now he'll try to force his way through my Sharingan with a new powerful jutsu to try and take me out in one shot.'_

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Ino looked out from behind a tree ' _Where's Naruto? Did he make it? Wait, is Itachi using another genjutsu?'_

"Don't worry my dear." Chiyo assured her "This jutsu is Kakashi's."

"Are you saying-"

"The mist is getting thicker, we both need to focus now. You must keep your attention firmly fixed on Kakashi's presence."

"Right."

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Itachi looked through the mist "The Hidden Mist Jutsu, quite an effective technique to prevent one from casting a genjutsu. Unless of course, one possesses the Sharingan. Kakashi, can we please stop this childish game of hide and seek?"

Kakashi stepped into Itachi's line of vision "Sure, why not?" he flung several kunai.

Itachi dodged them and formed hand seals " **Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"** he breathed out a fireball, apparently engulfing Kakashi in an explosion.

When it subsided, Kakashi emerged from underground and attempted to slug Itachi in the jaw.

Itachi dodged it, grabbed Kakashi's arm and thrusted a fist forward.

' _That fireball was different, something's not right.'_

Itachi grabbed Kakashi by the back of his jonin vest, glaring into his eyes.

Kakashi found himself experiencing something too weird to explain, from being thin as paper to being lit on fire.

"Nicely done, you certainly have mastery over your jutsu. Your earth style jutsu hid you from view for a moment so I didn't notice the change."

Kakashi grabbed Itachi by the arm.

"It all makes sense, of course my genjutsu has no effect on you because you're a Shadow Clone."

The _real_ Kakashi crawled out of a hole in the path dug by the fireball.

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' _Got him!'_ Kisame swung Samehada.

"Wanna bet?" Lee's leg burst forward and kicked Kisame even higher into the air.

' _He's fast!'_

Lee kicked the air to push himself higher "This is the end! **Fire Style: Asakujaku!"** he hit Kisame with a rapid barrage of fire-enhanced flaming punches, ending it with one final punch that sent Kisame crashing down into the waters below, which then promptly dissipated ' _So that water was made with his chakra, and once the user is defeated it only makes sense for the jutsu to disappear. Oh crap, the others!'_ he looked to see them all lying on the ground, only for them to disappear into puffs of smoke "What?"

"Nice one Lee!" that was when Tatsu, Neji and Sasuke dropped down from above "Took you long enough though."

"Huh? I'm confused, what's going on?"

"Remember when Kisame first fired that huge wave at us? Well we used that as a cover. Sasuke summoned his hawk Garuda and I substituted all of us with my Shadow Clones and transformations while the real ones were held prisoner by his water clones."

"Why didn't you tell me about this?"

"You're a bad actor, you know this."

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Kakashi watched Itachi struggling with his clone "Attack _him_ and my Shadow Clone, now Naruto!"

"Right!" Naruto charged in, a crimson ball of chakra swirling in his hand, even bigger than the original one " **Giant Tornado Rasengan!"** he slammed the larger, Kurama-powered Rasengan into Itachi's gut, but noticed something off.

Itachi had a small smile as he was struck by the attack.

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Tatsu studied the enemy's corpse "This is definitely f*cked up, whoever this guy is he's definitely not Kisame."

"But how?" asked Sasuke "He looked, spoke and acted exactly like Kisame in every way, shape and form."

"Something weird is going on here." Neji studied the corpse with his Byakugan.

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Chiyo was shocked when she saw _Itachi's_ corpse "What on earth?"

"When we were fighting, I could feel something was off." Kakashi admitted.

"Oh my…"

"Lady Chiyo, do you know who this person is?"

"I do. His name is Yura, and he's a jounin from our own village."

"What? What does this mean?"

"I wish I knew. Poor fool, he went missing after Gaara was abducted while the village was still in disarray."

"Is it possible that he was a spy for the Akatsuki?" asked Ino.

"No, he served on the council for 4 years."

"The Fireball Jutsu is a specialty for the Uchiha clan." Kakashi pointed out "That attack was the real thing."

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At the same time, the _real_ Itachi and Kisame reported to the leader and the rest of the Akatsuki that the Leaf groups had been warded off so they had enough time to focus on extracting and sealing Shukaku.

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Tatsu checked around the area "I can't sense anyone else around, the real Kisame isn't even nearby. This guy's purpose was probably to gather information and stall us here for awhile."

"Then we don't have any time to lose." Sasuke pointed out "We should hurry."

"Agreed."

"It's over this way." Pakkun led them onwards.

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Chiyo wrote something in a mini-scroll "Just as I thought, they were clearly trying to stall for time."

"That's an impressive jutsu they've got." Kakashi noted.

"Indeed."

Ino stared at Naruto for a moment ' _Naruto, I never realized you were fighting against people as strong as this.'_

"For them to use a jutsu like this to stall us can mean only one thing, it's worse than I thought. The extraction of the Tailed Beast has already begun."

"We're out of time." Kakashi muttered "We need to get to Gaara right away."

"Hold on, what do you mean extraction?" asked Ino.

"They're after the Shukaku." Chiyo told her grimly "If they can draw out the One-Tail then they can create a new jinchuuriki."

"A new jinchuuriki?"

"I told you didn't I? How the Tailed Beasts possess power beyond all reckoning, and how every man has tried to use them as military weapons. The name jinchuuriki is the name given to those who control that power."

"But earlier you said…"

"I know, and not for lack of trying. There were of course those who tried to harness that great power for their own purposes, attempting to control the beasts by sealing them away inside of people. By doing so, they hope to suppress the Tailed Beasts' great power and then bend that might to their will. The ones with Tailed Beasts sealed inside them, such as our own village's Gaara, are known as jinchuuriki. Jinchuuriki wield unimaginable power thanks to the resonance of the beasts they carry, and if you count Gaara then in total there have been three jinchuuriki in the history of the Sand Village thus far." she opened a scroll and summoned a wind-up bird, which she wound up and put the scroll in its mouth "It's up to you." she then sent the bird on its way.

"There were several wars fought using the jinchuuriki weren't there?"

"That's correct."

"But the people who become jinchuuriki-" then she looked at Naruto "Alright then, how are the Tailed Beasts extracted?" she got a surprised look from Naruto.

"A couple of things are needed. A sealing jutsu strong enough to counterbalance the Tailed Beast's power, and a lot of time. But for things to reach that point for the jinchuuriki…"

"You don't mean…"

"That's right dear, once the Tailed Beast is extracted… they die." the wind blew ominously as she continued "The others I mentioned, the jinchuuriki before Gaara, we extracted the Shukaku from them as well and both died as a result."

Ino gripped her fists, tears of rage in her eyes refusing to spill "That's horrible…"

"You've never been a crier Ino, not in all the time I've known you." Naruto's voice was soft yet reassuring, and gentle "Don't worry, I promise I'm gonna save Gaara."

"Naruto…"

"We'd better hurry." and he continued on.

Ino and the others just stared.

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Having received Chiyo's message, the Sand council argued about Yura and his loyalty, as well as the Kazekage position and also about the change in the Kazekage position, to which Kankuro became enraged and nearly attacked one of the elders.

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Tatsu was leading his group onwards, but noticed Lee lagging behind ' _Looks like opening up 6 gates still takes its toll on him, but at least he's still conscious._ Lee, you alright?"

"Are you kidding? I'm bursting with energy-" Lee promptly hit a tree with his face and fell to the ground, leg twitching.

"You're bursting with something but it's not energy." Sasuke leapt down to check on him "He's not looking so hot."

"What did you expect? He did just use the Asakujaku." Neji pointed out.

"He used that when he was 12."

"And it almost killed him." Tatsu pointed out "Either way, we'll rest here for a few hours to let Lee recover. Be sure to prepare guys, keep in mind that tomorrow we might be facing two of the Akatsuki, one of whom got hit by the Hidden Lotus and made it out in one piece."

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Kakashi was quick to stop his group "Stop here!"

Naruto and the others stopped "What is it Kakashi-sensei, what's wrong?"

"We're taking a short break."

"What?"

"That's a very wise decision." Chiyo noted.

"What do you mean? Come on, you were the one who was saying we couldn't waste any more time! If we just lay around doing nothing Gaara's gonna be-"

"Naruto, our pace has slowed since we faced off against that bogus Itachi. If we take the time to rest up now then we'll ultimately reach our destination faster, keep in mind that tomorrow we may end up facing the guys who kidnapped Gaara. We'll need our full strength."

"Fine, I get it."

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During the night, Zetsu had been ordered by the leader of the Akatsuki to dispose of the corpses used to create the fakes of Itachi and Kisame.

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After a few hours asleep, Lee bolted up "Alright, break time's over!"

Sasuke was rather skeptical "Lee, are you sure you're-"

"Less whining, more running!" he pulled a can of tantrum out of nowhere and downed the whole can in one gulp, then karate-chopped a tree in half "TANTRUM!"

' _Sanity… fading… fast…'_

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"It's time." Kakashi leapt down from a tree "That's enough rest, we should get moving."

Chiyo nodded "Agreed."

"Okay you two, wake up. We're heading out."

"Okay, in a minute." Naruto just turned away.

"I thought you were gonna save Gaara."

That got him to bolt upright "You bet your ass I'm gonna save him!"

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As the sun began rising over the Land of Rivers, the Akatsuki were entering the final stage of the extraction process.

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As they made their way, Neji felt something off "Something's not right."

"What is it Neji?" asked Lee "The enemy?"

"Just the opposite in fact, I can't detect any trace of the enemy. That's what's so disturbing. They were so intent on delaying us, using such a powerful jutsu."

"So what, does that mean that they…"

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"They're confident that they delayed us long enough." Kakashi noted.

Chiyo nodded "Yes indeed, I'm starting to think the same thing."

"So that means…" Ino trailed off.

"Dammit…" Naruto's eyes turned red with slits, his whisker marks becoming much more prominent than before, and he sped ahead "Hang on Gaara, we're coming!"

Chiyo looked over to Kakashi "Why is that boy pushing himself so hard to save Gaara? He's not even from the same village. What is he? What's that boy's story?"

Kakashi let out a sigh "Naruto is a jinchuuriki as well."

Chiyo's eyes widened.

"He has the Kyuubi sealed within him. It's not that he has any special feelings for the Hidden Sand or its people. He and Gaara are both jinchuuriki, Naruto knows how Gaara feels better than anyone in the Sand ever could. After all, those who are jinchuuriki have been treated the same way in every village. That's why he feels this desperate need to save Gaara. It doesn't matter whether Gaara's from the Sand or the Leaf or anywhere else. He's a friend, the only friend who's known the same pain Naruto's felt. Naruto's dream is to become Hokage, so the news that Gaara had been made Kazekage hit him pretty hard. He was frustrated, but at the same time, deep in his heart, he was profoundly happy for Gaara. You see, Naruto has another remarkable gift. He doesn't need much time or many words to make friends with almost everyone he meets."

"As for me, I've lived a long life. I've seen many things over the years, I thought I'd come to know the ways of the world. I knew that alliances with foreign lands were just for show and not to be trusted. I knew that the only way the Sand Village was to be protected was if I did it myself. It was my jutsu that sealed the Shukaku in young Gaara after consulting with his father, the Fourth Kazekage of course. I truly thought I was helping my village, but in fact I was jeopardizing its very existence, and now I find that my people's survival depends on one of those alliances with a foreign land I never trusted. I see to have been wrong about many things, perhaps everything. I am old and weary, I want nothing more than to just give up. Oh Kakashi, when I look at them and see their youth, their potential, I envy them so much."

"No no, your life has only just begun. You're still young."

Chiyo burst out laughing, then smiled "Perhaps you're right, maybe there is some purpose for keeping and old bag of bones like me around. There must be something I can do."

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The extraction finished.

Feeling his life fading, Gaara contemplated his existence as Shukaku was fully extracted from him, killing him.

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Tatsu and his group arrived outside the barrier "So this is the place?"

"Gaara's on the other side of that boulder." Pakkun leapt down from Sasuke's shoulder.

"Getting past a barrier like this isn't gonna be easy."

"So what then?" asked Sasuke "Do we smash our way in or should I just use a Chidori?"

"No." then he looked back "For f*ck's sake Kakashi, couldn't you show up on time for once?"

Kakashi shrugged "Well we ran into a little trouble along the way."

"Wait a minute, by a little trouble you don't mean me do you Kakashi?" asked Chiyo.

Ino smiled "Looks like we were just a step behind you guys."

"Looks like it, who's the old lady?" asked Sasuke.

"This is Lady Chiyo, an advisor from the Sand Village."

Chiyo held up a peace sign "Very pleased to meet you."

Sasuke gave a wary nod "Sasuke Uchiha."

"The Thunderclap of the Leaf, your profile is in the Bingo Book."

"It is?"

"A-rank, same with Tatsu Kamikaze the Leaf's Golden Dragon, and Rock Lee the Green Beast of the Leaf. All of you are A-rank."

"...Good to know." Tatsu commented ' _Note to self, get the newest copy of the Bingo Book when this is over.'_

Naruto said nothing, he just looked at the barrier ' _Hang on Gaara, just hang on!'_

"Neji, use your Byakugan to check inside."

"Right." Neji activated his Byakugan to check beyond the boulder "Inside, it looks like there's a large cavern but…"

"What?"

"I just can't quite make out what's going on in there. I see several people…"

"Neji, what about Gaara?" Naruto started shaking him frantically "Is Gaara one of the people you see?!"

"Back off a second, I'm trying to locate him now…" he paused and looked around inside.

"Neji!"

"Will you cut it out!" Tatsu caught Naruto in a full-nelson "Alright Neji, keep going."

"Thank you." Neji looked inside and saw the eyes of the Gedo Statue close "I don't… what _is_ that thing?"

"Dammit Naruto stop shaking! Neji, please tell us what's going on in there and shut him up."

"Well… it's hard to describe with words."

"So that means we'll have to go and see for ourselves. Lee."

"On it." Lee leapt back, then charged and punched the boulder as hard as he could, only for the barrier to absorb the impact "Dammit, it didn't work. And OW!"

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The leader of the Akatsuki sensed the chaos and discovered that both groups had arrived, and had Sasori and Deidara see to them.

Before he disappeared, Itachi gave one description for telling which one was Naruto: the one who would burst in and start barking first.

Not wrong, but Sasori and Deidara weren't satisfied.

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Lee held his throbbing arm "Dammit that hurt! So what's the plan?"

Tatsu studied the barrier "Well obviously we've gotta get rid of this barrier before anything else comes. First things first, we've gotta figure out what type of barrier it is. Kakashi, what do you think."

"Looks to me like a five-seal barrier." Kakashi told him "A strong layer of protection in which 5 tages with the word _forbidden_ written on them are fastened around the area that's being guarded."

"One tag is in front of us, there must be 4 more in other locations. Can't we just pull it off though?"

"It's not that easy, the tags are in 5 different places but they have to be taken down at the exact same moment."

"Simultaneously?"

"Right, the barrier won't budge unless we pull off all 5 tags simultaneously. It's a tall order. That one up there is only one tag."

"Which means there's 4 more out there. Neji."

"I understand." Neji activated his Byakugan "I found them! One is on a meter about 500 northeast of us. The second one is on a tree trunk aside a riverbank, 350 meters south-southeast. The third you'll find 650 meters northwest on a cliff, and the last one is in the woods less than 800 meters to the southwest."

"Looks like each one of them is pretty far apart." Ino pointed out "How are we gonna signal each other?"

"I've got that covered." Tatsu pulled something out of his bag "We should just be in range for these wireless radios."

Kakashi nodded "Good thinking."

"I got a couple of these from guy for just this sort of thing. Anyway, we'll stay in constant communication and follow Neji's directions to the tags."

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The astral projections of the other Akatsuki members disappeared, along with the Gedo Statue itself, leaving Sasori and Deidara alone in the hideout, waiting.

With Gaara's corpse right behind them.

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"Alright, let's find these tags and get rid of them." Tatsu adjusted his headband and attached his wireless radio to it, with the rest following his lead "Here's the plan: Ino, Lee, Neji and I are the fastest so we'll handle them."

Naruto gave a thumbs up "We're all counting on ya."

"Right. Lee, you head northwest into the woods. Neji, the northeast boulder is all yours. Ino, you get the south-southeast. I'll take care of the one on the northwest cliff, that's the hardest location and should be the hardest to eliminate."

"What's the frequency?" asked Kakashi.

"174."

"Copy that." Kakashi checked it.

"Everybody ready?"

They all nodded.

"Good. Now to make sure this turns out well, one last thing to do." he held out a hand "Alright guys, put your hands in the center."

"Right." Lee put his hand in.

"Ino, you too."

"Fine." Ino put her hand in.

"Neji, put yours in."

Neji stared intently "...This isn't going to be like Guy-sensei's constipated grunting is it?"

"No, this is way better."

"Fine." Neji put his in, albeit reluctantly.

"As we approach the decisive battlegrounds, believe that the blades of our hearts will never shatter! Believe that our resolves will never waver! Though our paths may diverge, our iron hearts will remain as one! Swear that even if the land itself may break asunder, we will return alive and well! Scatter!" and they scattered.

"Well, guess it's about time for me to shove off." Pakkun decided "No real reason I should stick around, I'd just be getting in the way."

Kakashi held up a hand "Thanks Pakkun, good work."

"Alright then, see you guys later." and he left.

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The group had separated and gone after different tags.

" _Now let's recap the mission."_ Tatsu contacted everyone " _The 4 of us are to find their tags and stand by. After all 4 have reached their positions, we'll remove the tags on my signal. Kakashi's group will take down there's at the same moment, and that's how we'll break the five-seal barrier."_

Kakashi continued on for him "At the moment the barrier's down, Sasuke will destroy the boulder at the entrance. That will be our signal to charge inside and rescue Gaara.

"Right." Sasuke got ready, getting into the stance for a Purple Thunder blast.

Chiyo stared at the boulder, thinking of the one beyond it ' _Sasori… it's absurd, I never imagined a day like this could come.'_

" _Kakashi, we're all in position."_

Kakashi nodded "Good, we're all set here. Ready when you are. We'll make our assault using a button hook entry."

"Right." Sasuke began charging a Purple Thunder blast.

"Tatsu, you guys ready?"

" _Just be ready to remove your tag on the count of three. On my mark. 1… 2… 3!'_ they all removed their tags.

Kakashi removed his at the same time "Now Sasuke!"

" **Lightning Style: Purple Thunder!"** Sasuke fired the Purple Thunder, slamming it straight into the boulder and shattering it.

"Alright, let's move." Kakashi gave the signal.

"Right!" they all charged in and froze at the sight before them.

"We're too late."

Chiyo glared at the one in front of her ' _Sasori…'_

Naruto stared at Gaara's corpse in horror ' _Gaara…'_ Kurama's chakra began leaking out of him, his eyes turning red prominent.

"Finally. Well then, which one of you would be the jinchuuriki?" asked Deidara nonchalantly.

"YOU BASTARDS! I'LL KILL THE BOTH OF YOU!"

"And that answers that."

"The one who bursts in and starts barking, that would be him." Sasori noted dryly.

"Sasori my man I think you're correct."

"WHERE THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE SITTING?!" Naruto roared.

"Seriously, Itachi was right on the money."

"Gaara! What the hell are you doing?! Come on, why are you just lying there?! Get up! GAARA! Answer me, what are you deaf? Come on, knock it off already!"

"Naruto, enough!" Sasuke barked, then his tone softened "You know full well that…"

' _Dammit…'_

"Your friend's right and you know it too, he's been dead for awhile now." Deidara lightly smacked Gaara's face for emphasis, infuriating Naruto even more.

"Well?" asked Sasori.

"Oh yeah, that's him alright."

"Give him back." Naruto snarled "GIVE GAARA BACK YOU SONS OF-" he charged forward in a rage.

Kakashi appeared in front of him "Cool it, charge in without thinking and we're done for."

Deidara noticed Sasori shoot him a glance "What, something on your mind Sasori my man?"

"I'll hold onto him." Sasori was referring to Gaara "Since it appears that jinchuuriki will stop at nothing to get him back."

"Yeah, that's putting it lightly."

Kakashi studied both of them intently, Deidara first "Okay, it looks like the guy on the left is the one who infiltrated the Sand and took lord Kazekage." then he looked at Sasori "Which means this one is the puppet master who wounded Kankuro so badly." he looked at Chiyo ' _Her grandson Sasori, huh?'_

"Well my man, I doubt you wanna hear this but I'll just go ahead and say it anyway. I think I'll take care of the jinchuuriki."

Sasori's glare hardened "Look, our quota is one apiece. Don't push your luck Deidara."

"An artist must always seek ever greater stimulation lest his senses go dull on him my man. Rumor has it the Kyuubi jinchuuriki is pretty powerful, a canvas truly worthy of my artistry."

"What? Those pyrotechnics of yours, art? Art is a work of beauty, captured and left for prosperity. Art is eternal beauty."

"Eternal beauty, are you kidding me? Look don't get me wrong, as a fellow artist I respect your point of view but true art is fleeting, a flash of beauty burning brightly and then vanishing in a heartbeat."

"What did you say? Apparently Deidara, one of us doesn't understand what true art is."

"That would be you my friend." he ignored Naruto growling.

"Nonsense, eternal beauty is what constitutes real art."

"Don't be absurd, true art only lasts a moment."

"ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!" Naruto charged forward in a rage and fired off a giant shuriken.

Sasori easily blocked it with his iron tail "Are you trying to make me angry?"

"Easy." Deidara tried to wave him off "I told you you didn't wanna hear it didn't I? Give me a break will ya?"

"I don't have to remind you what happens when I get angry do I?" poison began dripping from his tail "Why don't you explain it to me again Deidara?"

"Art is one thing and one thing only." Deidara used some of the chewed clay in his hand and formed a giant clay bird "The explosion itself." he had the bird pick up Gaara and stow it away in its mouth "It's not even in the same league compared to your grotesque puppet show."

Sasori thrusted his tail forward.

Deidara dodged it as he leapt up onto the bird "See you around my man. _Come on Kyuubi jinchuuriki, let's see if you can keep up.'_

"Deidara you fool, I don't believe this!"

"JUST WHERE THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING?!" Naruto charged after Deidara in his unyielding.

"Naruto!" Kakashi called, to no avail.

"Kakashi." Sasuke got his attention "Go help Naruto deal with the one outside, lady Chiyo and I will deal with this creep."

"Just don't do anything rash until Tatsu and the others get back." and Kakashi rushed out to help Naruto.

Sasuke checked his wireless radio "Tatsu, you read me? We're gonna need you back here now."

" _No can do Sasuke, we've been caught in an enemy trap. It'll take us awhile to get through it, you're gonna have to hold out until then. Signing off."_ then the connection shut off.

"Dammit."

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Naruto was shaking with rage "Give him back! GIVE GAARA BACK!"

Deidara only smirked.

"Alright, no time to waste here." Kakashi lifted his headband, revealing his Sharingan eye.

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Sasori chose an awkward moment to make small talk "The way I heard it, you retired a long time ago."

"I suddenly longed to see my grandson's face again." Chiyo said dryly.

Sasuke looked Sasori in the eye and tensed ' _I haven't felt anything like this since Zabuza, I can feel his bloodlust, his battle experience, and how many people he's killed. This guy's no joke.'_

"Sasuke, do not fear." Chiyo stepped forward "I am here with you, you just step back now dear."

"The hell I will!" Sasuke charged towards Sasori and formed several hand seals " **Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu!"** he breathed out a massive fire dragon.

Sasori attempted to block the flames with his tail, but was still engulfed, and when the flames subsided, his cloak had been incinerated "If you insist on interfering with me then I guess I have no choice. How would you and that little brat there like to be part of my collection Granny Chiyo?"

"What the hell is that thing? _It took my Dragon Flame Jutsu like it was nothing.'_

"What you see there is not Sasori's real body." Chiyo told him.

"I figured that much, so is it some kind of armor?"

"That's merely a puppet."

"I heard he's a puppet master, so he's using that thing both as his weapon and his armor and the real him is inside that thing? I mean I've heard that puppet masters are weak in close combat."

"It was to combat that exact weakness that Sasori created this puppet, it's his specialty Hiruko."

"You seem to know a lot about it."

"I know everything about that puppet."

"But do you know how I prepare a new specimen for my collection?" Sasori rasped "First I drain its blood, then I remove all the organs and wash it inside and out, make it nice and clean. And then, after I preserve the body against decay, the final step is to fill it with hidden weapons. As the hag said, this one is called Hiruko. It's only one of the specimens in my collection. Once I've added you and the boy I'll have collected exactly 300, this is my art."

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Deidara smirked down at his opponents "Are you really sure you wanna waste your time on me, Kakashi-sensei with the Sharingan? You know, my man Sasori is probably a more dangerous opponent than I am, as much as I hate to say that. His idea of art is very different from mine."

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Chiyo glared "You call it art do you?"

"What are you talking about?" asked Sasuke.

"Long long ago, when he lived in the Hidden Sand, he was esteemed as a master craftsman, admired for his many extraordinary puppets. But his true passion was for making puppets out of the living and then adding them as specimens to his collection, he calls this monstrous conduct art."

"And what about the one in front of us, Hiruko?"

"He was a shinobi who lived in a nearby village, Sasori turned him into what you see now, a puppet that retains the shell of its previous physical form. It's called a Human Puppet."

"A Human Puppet?"

"And the same fate awaits you." Sasori growled "You will soon become another of my works of art."

' _This guy's cruelty makes Itachi look merciful._ What should I expect?"

"This puppet's highly skilled in attack and defence, deadly at both." Chiyo told him "The first thing to do is find a way to force Sasori out of there."

"If I can get close enough I can use Chidori to destroy it."

"Easier said than done, that puppet is full of hidden mechanisms. Without knowing what they are, it's difficult to anticipate exactly how to counteract them."

"On the other hand you know a lot about how that puppet functions, so we've got the advantage for this one."

"So I thought, that's why I was sure I'd be able to deal with him at first, but now I realize that I was wrong."

"Let me guess, he's made some improvements since the last time you saw him."

"Now that I look at it, this one is different in many ways from the Hiruko puppet I knew. The Hiruko I used to know didn't have that shell on its back, he must've heightened its defences, and that left arm is new to me. Not to mention the hidden mechanisms, we have to assume they've been refined and improved as well."

"So your plan is?"

"If we are to defeat Sasori then we'll have to first destroy Hiruko."

"If you lack the destructive power to finish the job then my Chidori and other lightning style attacks should more than make up for it. Besides, I've been trained by none other Shisui Uchiha himself."

"As in Shisui the Teleporter?"

"The very same. I've been trained by Shisui the Teleporter, my sensei is Kakashi the Copy Ninja, I think I manage."

"I hope so, because to do that you will first have to avoid every attack that his hidden weapons launch at you. You must dodge every one perfectly, you can't risk even the slightest scratch."

"His traps are poisoned, even a tiny scratch will kill me."

"Before you can ever get to him he will strike at you with all his hidden weapons, to survive you must understand and anticipate the puppet master's moves."

"I think I can handle that." Sasuke's Sharingan flared into life "So then what are you going to do?"

"Take a good look at me, what do you see? Simply a worthless old bag of bones? Well look again." she let her hair down "Leave this part to me. Just count on me, even his experience doesn't compare to mine. Sasori knows this, which is why he hesitates and doesn't dare to attack us recklessly. For someone who hates to be kept waiting, he must be very frustrated. What he doesn't know is I've already made the first move. Sasuke, come a little closer."

Sasuke did.

"I'm going to tell you a secret. Together, we shall finish him." she whispered something in his ear.

Sasori was losing his patience, or what was left of it ' _What're they up to? I can't make out a word the old hag is saying.'_

Sasuke's head shot up and he nodded "Right, ready when you are."

"Are you sure?" Sasori gripped the cloth on his face "Well it's about time, I _really_ hate to be kept waiting don't you?"

"No need to worry Sasori, we'll end it quickly." Chiyo charged in, with Sasuke right behind her.

Sasori removed the cloth on his mouth and fired a barrage of poison senbon.

Chiyo dodged every one, and whichever ones Sasuke couldn't dodge he deflected using his Raijin katana.

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Deidara noticed the commotion inside "Seems they've started."

Naruto looked back ' _Sasuke…'_

"How confident are you in that boy and the old lady? You really think they're good enough to handle my man Sasori?"

Kakashi knew what Deidara was aiming at ' _He wants to get me out of the way so he can fight Naruto one on one. But this guy defeated the Kazekage, one of the 5 great Kage. I don't think Naruto on his own could handle him.'_

"Go on sensei." Naruto growled "Go to Sasuke, I'll handle this."

Deidara smirked as he began molding a clay bomb ' _There we go, take the bait.'_

"Don't worry, I'll take care of it. I'LL SAVE GAARA!" Naruto charged in a rage, forming several hand seals " **Fire Style: Hell Foxfire!"** he launched a large fox made of flames.

Deidara quickly dodged it and fired off a clay bomb, only for Kakashi to stop it with a shuriken, causing it to detonate "Good, it would've been very disappoint if you'd been beaten that easily."

Naruto furiously emerged from the hole in the cliffside made by his attack "Let go of him, I'll never let you have him!"

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With Chiyo by his side, Sasuke kept dodging and deflecting Sasori's poison senbon as they kept coming at him ' _Thanks to my Sharingan I can see the movements of the senbon more clearly and dodge them effectively.'_

Sasori finally ran out of the senbon from his mouth ' _They were ready for that one huh? In that case…'_ he unleashed his torpedo arm "Now die!" he unleashed several cylinders, revealing more senbon inside each of them.

They dodged all of them, or deflected half of them in Sasuke's case.

' _They dodged every one, impossible! The old hag I can understand, but this… this boy? Wait… the Sharingan. So this is Itachi's little brother. Still though, how?'_

' _Now!'_ Sasuke charged, his Sharingan evolving into the Sanda Sharingan.

' _And Granny Chiyo's just standing there. Is this boy mocking me? There's no way he's an Uchiha, the Sharingan isn't blue! Is this Uchiha-wanna really attacking me head on all by himself?'_ Sasori thrusted his tail forward, only for it to stop mere inches away ' _What?! Something stopped it. Of course… Chiyo!'_

"Now Sasuke, now!" Chiyo screamed.

"On it!" Sasuke charged a Raijin-powered Chidori.

"Strike it down!"

"Right! **Raijin Chidori!"** Sasuke slammed the Chidori down on the shell.

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Naruto glared at Deidara, his eyes filled with rage "I'll get Gaara, nothing can stop me!"

"You're quite an usual jinchuuriki aren't you." Deidara noted "I thought you were all sullen loners who didn't care about anyone else. To date we've destroyed two jinchuuriki, not including him of course. But nobody ever tried to save them from us before, not a single friend or neighbor, not a soul came to their aide. In fact it seemed like most people were happy to finally be rid of them. You can't forsake one of your own kind can you? You feel connected to this pathetic creature, such a shame. Gaara died when the One-Tail was extracted from him, very soon now the same thing will happen to you."

Naruto's features turned more feral "If Gaara's dead, YOU'RE GONNA PAY!"

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Sasuke's Chidori shattered Hiruko into pieces, leaving only his head and tail intact, only for him to see a cloaked shape "So that's it…"

"Sasori's true body." Chiyo confirmed "So you've finally come out eh?" no response "Come now, let me get a good look at you. I've come all this way to see you." still no response "I've waited 20 years, I want to see my grandson's face."

Sasuke's Sanda Sharingan deactivated, and he saw Hiruko's head pop up ' _It can still move?'_ he got hit by a barrage of senbon, only to disappear in a blast of lightning, before the real Sasuke appeared and cut Hiruko's head in two "So you had chakra threads still attached to the head."

"Well played, I should've expected no less from my own granny or Itachi's younger brother. No wonder you could dodge my attacks so easily. You can both foresee my attacks, one of you possessing the Sharingan. By the way, how clever to attach chakra threads to Hiruko's tail. Silly me, I only noticed when the tail's motion was brought to an abrupt halt. You did it under the cover of the boy's fire jutsu didn't you? You threw some kunai under the cover of the flames, and the thread tied to the knives stuck to the tail once they were deflected." Sasori's voice was no longer deep or raspy.

Chiyo smirked "Good, even though I used the tiniest bit of chakra to keep the strings undetectable you still figured it out."

"But of course, remember who taught me how to play with puppets, who drilled that talent into me. It was you."

"Indeed, but unfortunately playtime is over."

"You don't know how right you are." Sasori removed his hood, revealing his face, drawing a gasp from Chiyo "So do you still think this will be easy Granny Chiyo?"

"I don't understand… Your face is exactly the same, you haven't aged…"

Sasuke's eyes widened ' _I thought Sasori left the Hidden Sand 20 years ago, how come this guy looks the same age as me?'_

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Naruto was more pissed than ever about the lack of progress with Deidara "Dammit all to hell!"

Kakashi looked back ' _There's noise coming from inside the cavern, no doubt a battle's already underway. I need to know what's going on in there, but…'_

"I'VE HAD IT, HAND OVER GAARA RIGHT NOW!"

Deidara smirked ' _It's only a matter of time before my man Sasori takes care of their friends inside. But if he rushes out here then the whole point of using this guy to draw out that Kyuubi jinchuuriki will be for nothing.'_ he took off down the river.

"You bastard, you're not getting away!" Naruto charged after him in a rage.

"Naruto no, stop!" Kakashi shouted.

"Just stay and help Sasuke, I can take this guy Kakashi-sensei!"

"Dammit…" Kakashi looked back, then went after Naruto and quickly contacted Tatsu on his wireless radio "Tatsu come in, how are things on your end?"

" _No go Kakashi, we've triggered some kind of enemy trap and now we're all fighting clones of ourselves. I hate to say it, but I think this is gonna take a while."_ then he signed off.

Kakashi charged after Naruto at full speed ' _Sasuke, Lady Chiyo, we'll have to hold you for a bit longer.'_

"THERE'S NO CHANCE I'M LETTING YOU GET AWAY!" Naruto roared.

Deidara looked back ' _Still chasing me huh?_ You'd better catch up with me soon! _And when you do reach me I'll take care of you.'_

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Temari, Kankuro, Ebizo and a squad from the Sand were making their way towards the Land of Rivers, when they took a break to rest and Ebizo told them about the Third Kazekage and how there was no body discovered nor any sign he'd been kidnapped.

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The battle in the cavern had come to a standstill at Sasori's sudden revelation.

Sasori smirked at how shocked Chiyo looked "What's the matter granny Chiyo? Are you so filled with emotion that you can't speak? I'm not surprised, it's our reunion in 20 years."

Chiyo felt a bead of sweat dripping down the side of her face "Sasori, you…"

"While I have you let me show you something special." Sasori pulled out a scroll from one of his sleeves, revealing a 3 on it "I guarantee it will move you, this piece was particularly difficult to acquire."

Sasuke's eyes hardened as he got into a battle stance "Three? The hell are you…?"

"But on the other hand that's what makes me so fond of him." Sasori channeled some chakra into the scroll and pulled out a certain puppet.

"What's…?"

Chiyo gasped "No, it can't be… impossible… It's him… it's the Third Kazekage…"

Sasuke froze ' _The Third Kazekage? The one that went missing years ago and they never found his body or even found out what happened to him? Well I guess now we know.'_

Sasori smirked "What do you think, doesn't it just take you back Granny Chiyo?"

"Wait, I heard the Third Kazekage went missing years ago and they never discovered what happened to him. What does this mean?"

Chiyo's eyes narrowed "So this must mean what happened to him."

"Wait, are you saying…"

"It's been over 10 years since the Third Kazekage suddenly disappeared from the village without a trace, we scoured the countryside but could never find him. The strongest of our Kazekage simply vanished. Sasori, it was you?"

"Yeah, and what if it was?" Sasori retorted uncaringly "I'm not afraid of a retired old woman, you've got one foot in the grave and you want revenge. You can't even touch me."

"Retired? One foot in the grave? Maybe, but if I hadn't hauled this old body here to face you then I would've died with far too many regrets. My own grandson, it's bad enough you got yourself mixed up with evil people but to think you could betray your own village and meddle with a Kazekage for the third time? Orochimaru may have been the one who killed Gaara's father the Fourth Kazekage, but you complicit from the beginning, and now you've taken Gaara and the Third Kazekage too."

"Wait a minute, I wasn't involved in the death of the Fourth Kazekage. That was all the doing of one of my agents."

"If that's the case then it's the same as if you did it with your own hands! Do you claim you aren't involved at all?"

"It's true that Orochimaru and the Akatsuki have some history, we've done some work together."

"So you were." Sasuke growled "If you've worked with Orochimaru then you know all about him and the things that he's done, which means you have the answers I want."

"I'd love to stay and chat but unfortunately I really must eliminate the two of you and then go capture that jinchuuriki. I do hate to keep people waiting, sadly there's no time to answer your little quiz. Well then, shall we begin?" he manipulated the Third Kazekage and had it charge.

' _Here it comes. I've gotta be careful, if his weapons even scratch me then I'm dead.'_

"Sasuke!" Chiyo pulled him back with chakra threads attached to his back.

"Die!" Sasori thrusted the Third Kazekage forward, intent on stabbing Sasuke with its poisonous blades.

"He's fast!" Chiyo blocked the blades using Hiruko's tail.

Sasori quickly shredded "Slick move old lady, but how are you going to block this one?" he manipulated the threads, revealing various arms attached to the Third's main left arm " **Puppet: Thousand Hands Earth!"** all of the arms were brought down on Sasuke at once.

When the dust settled, Sasuke was revealing to have blocked the strike with Thunder Clones, which then promptly dissipated ' _That was close, good thinking Chiyo.'_

Sasori frowned ' _With the old lady controlling the action I'm not getting anywhere. Well in that case…'_ he unleashed a cloud of poison.

"Quick Sasuke, hold your breath!" Chiyo shouted, just before Sasuke was drawn into the ground of poison.

' _Control her all you want, it won't save her from the gas.'_

"Sasuke!"

 **To be continued…**

 **A/N:**

 **Lee actually does remember Kisame, unlike Guy, and was just screwing with him during the fight.**

 **Just for the sake of being clear, Sasuke will fight Sasori with Chiyo. I figured that with the Tenchi Bridge meeting coming up, it's only fair if I give him some spotlight before then.**

 **For the sake of being clear, I'm not writing out the clone fights because I honestly think that's just plain stupid.**


	5. Battles End, the Kazekage's Return

Deidara finished molding some more clay in his hand ' _Might as well get started.'_

"Where do you think you're going?!" Naruto charged after him in a rage.

' _I really am lucky, getting to take down two different jinchuuriki.'_ he molded some small explosive clay birds.

" **Wind Style: Crimson Wind!"** Naruto breathed out a sharp slash of wind, sending the birds flying back and detonating in front of him, before he noticed another one going behind him and engulfing Kakashi in an explosion "Kakashi-sensei!"

' _Well, he is the Copy Ninja. A single piece of Detonating Clay isn't gonna cut it I guess.'_ he stuck his hand in his pouch where he kept his clay ' _I don't have a lot of clay left either, all I was trying to do was lure out the jinchuuriki and now I've gotta deal with this?'_

Kakashi chased after an enraged Naruto ' _We've strayed too far from Sasuke, any further and we'll be out of transmission range too. I won't be able to contact Tatsu or the others. I have to hurry.'_

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Tatsu's group was struggling against the clones made from removing the barrier.

They were getting exhausted, and only Tatsu and Lee were able to land any blows on their opponents.

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Sasori stared intently at the cloud of poison ' _It doesn't matter if he's an Uchiha, there's no way the the boy will survive my poison.'_

Sasuke was holding his breath inside the poison cloud ' _Pace yourself Sasuke, you've gotta plan carefully for this one.'_

"Sasuke!" Chiyo tried to use her chakra threads.

"I don't think so." Sasori flexed his fingers, and strong threads went into the poisonous fog and caught onto something.

Sasuke found himself bound from the waist down, leaving only his arms free ' _Dammit, I can't break out of these things… Even if I cut myself free, I'd still have to deal with the poison.'_

"There we go."

Chiyo was stunned "What have you-?"

"Ropes with kunai on the end. You should deflect them, dodging only gets you tangled up." he tried to pull Sasuke towards him.

Chiyo pulled back, leaving Sasuke in the middle "So you're determined not to let the child go are you?"

"It's useless granny, if one breathes even a hint of this poison then you're a goner."

' _Sasuke…'_

"It's all over."

Sasuke's mind was racing ' _I can't hold out much longer, I've only got one option: hit myself with Purple Thunder and use the blast to propel myself out of the poison fog.'_

Chiyo saw the Third Kazekage run out of poison gas ' _That poisonous gas will disperse in a minute, hang in there Sasuke.'_

Sasori smirked "I have more than one store of poison you know."

' _What?!'_

Sasori unleashed the second wave.

Sasuke was struggling to hold his breath ' _I've only got one shot at this…'_ purple lightning crackled into life in his hand, and he thrusted it into his shoulder, resulting in an explosion that dissipated the cloud of poison hurled him away, tumbling towards the cave entrance, his shoulder bleeding heavily "Dammit…"

' _Well well, not bad at all. I should've expected as much from your little brother, Itachi…'_

Sasuke limped over to Chiyo, using a cloth from his bag to stop the bleeding "I'm alright, don't worry."

Chiyo studied Sasuke for a moment ' _This boy, he used that lightning attack to fire off a blast that dissipated the gas, wounding himself to escape the trap. How reckless…'_

Sasuke shot Sasori a fierce glare "Make no mistake pretty boy, I'm the one who's going to kill you. When this is over, you _will_ be dead." he stood, wincing from the wound in his shoulder "It doesn't matter what you do to me, blow of my limbs or poison me and throw everything you've got at me, but I'll destroy you and then I'll make you tell me everything you know about Orochimaru."

"Is that so?" Sasori twitched his finger, sending out a barrage of kunai.

Sasuke braced himself.

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Deidara looked back to where Naruto and Kakashi were still pursuing him ' _All I want is the jinchuuriki, the Copy-Ninja's a headache I don't need. I have to find a way to separate them.'_ he formed two clay spiders and threw them, only for Naruto and Kakashi to avoid them.

Kakashi was quick to figure out his angle ' _He sure is trying his damndest to split the two of us up. So that's his game, he wants to face Naruto one-on-one.'_

' _So much for strategy, I guess my only option is taking the two of them down together. I don't have much Detonating Clay left. A shame really, if I knew I was gonna end up in this predicament then I probably would've brought along a little extra. Oh well, I still have my trump card.'_

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Sasuke had prepared himself to fend off Sasori's attack, only to see two puppets appear in front of him, with Chiyo controlling them "The hell?"

"Really now, haven't you any manners? One should pay attention when another is talking to them." Chiyo scolded.

Sasori frowned "So you brought them."

"You remember these don't you?"

"Yes, I suppose I do."

"That's right, these are the very first puppets that you ever crafted. The Father and the Mother."

Sasuke was rather creeped out ' _This is kind of like some weird torture porn._ Wait, you mean Sasori's…?"

Sasori remained unfazed "What could you possibly hope to accomplish with them? Those puppets were made by my hand, I know all their tricks. This is just foolish."

Chiyo smirked and recalled Sasori's use of them during his childhood "You're quite certain of that are you?" the Father and Mother joined hands and broke apart, revealing a set of wire string between them "Sasuke, clear out of the way." once Sasuke was on standby, she sent the puppets forward.

Sasori attempted to use the Puppet: Thousand Hands Earth.

The Mother and Father puppets cut right through the extending arms, cutting them into several pieces.

Sasori revealed a buzzsaw on the Third's left arm.

Chiyo revealed a club in Father's arm and a sword from Mother's arm and sent both to meet the Third in a clash in the middle, resulting in a fierce and intense puppet battle.

When the little scuffle ended, Sasori's Third had had its buzzsaw destroyed.

Chiyo's Mother and Father had lost their sword and club respectively.

"This is starting to get messy, guess I'd better play my next hand." Sasori formed a hand seal, and a strange substance emerged from the Third's mouth.

"So my suspicions were true, that's the Third's jutsu."

"Brings back memories huh? This jutsu is the reason the Third is held as the most powerful ninja the Sand has ever known. I'm gonna grind you into dust."

' _Dammit…'_

"What is that?" asked Sasuke "I'm getting a bad vibe just looking at it."

"The most terrifying weapon in the history of the Sand Village, the Iron Sand."

"Iron Sand?"

"This is one of the original jutsu of the Third Kazekage himself, adapted from one used by the former host of Shukaku. It can mold particles of Iron Sand into any shape or weapon, forming the perfect weapon for every situation. The Third had a special physical constitution that allowed him to convert his infused chakra to create magnetic forces. This puppet has the same ability, it's manipulating the sand by making its chakra magnetic."

"But how? Even if it's made from the body of the Third Kazekage this thing's a puppet, it's not like it's alive. How can a puppet hold chakra?"

"It can't, that puppet is a Human Puppet made from a real body. It's fundamentally different from the Mother and Father puppets of mine, it was made from a real person. Sasori is the only one who can produce human puppets, the puppet retains whatever chakra the body possessed in life, the added benefit being the puppet is able to use the same jutsu it could when it was alive. It's the great advantage Human Puppets have over ordinary ones."

Sasori smirked "There's more to it than that, this puppet is my favorite out of my whole collection."

"Sasuke, get out of here while you still can."

Sasuke's head snapped towards her "What?"

"Leave it to me, I'll handle this. This is more than we bargained for, there is nothing else you can do, not against that."

"You're too slow!" Sasori prepared his attack " **Iron Sand: Scatter Shower!"** he thrusted several Iron Sand bullets forward.

"No!" Chiyo thrusted her chakra strings, having the Mother puppet pull Sasuke out of the way, and when the attack subsided it revealed that Chiyo had shielded herself using the chakra shield installed inside the Father puppet.

"You've made some changes I see, and a chakra shield at that. A definite upgrade since I last played with them."

Chiyo tried to move the Father puppet, only to find that that she couldn't due to the joints being clotted ' _As I feared, crippled by the Iron Sand.'_

"You have to do more than just block it, you have to dodge this jutsu to survive. Is that it? Saving the Uchiha-wannabe is all you could manage? The Iron Sand has crept into every crevice of the puppet, as long as I have the Third's magnetic power that puppet is worthless. Let's see… yes, I think it's time I attack both of you at once. Just to make sure you're really dead, I'll use my most lethal form." he gathered the Iron Sand and formed it into various spikes "You won't get away this time. One puppet, two people, can't protect both. What do you say to that you witch? Which of you will die?!" he brought the spikes down on both of them.

When the attack subsided, Sasuke opened his eyes to find the Mother puppet shielding him from the impact of the Iron Sand ' _Well there goes the other puppet, so what now? Most of my jutsu are close to mid-range lightning and I can't afford to touch that stuff since it's most likely covered in his poison. What are we- wait, Chiyo!'_ his head snapped towards the right.

Chiyo had shielded herself with a chakra shield in her right arm ' _Just in time.'_

Sasori smirked "Just enough, but still rigging your own body? We puppet masters are all alike, our minds work the same don't they?"

Chiyo found her arm clotted, then her eyes hardened in realization "Of course, now I understand."

"Once the Iron Sand gets in it's the end of the line, the puppet's useless. So granny, what now?"

Chiyo looked and saw the Mother puppet being clotted up by the Iron Sand, then began to remember how her son and daughter-in-law were killed by the White Fang of the Leaf, leaving her to raise Sasori herself. She had decided to pass down the Puppet Master jutsu to Sasori, to which he managed to create his parents through puppets in order to feel the parental love he never got. She promptly discarded her useless puppet arm.

"Take away all their puppets and even the greatest masters are nothing." Sasori unleashed more of the Iron Sand.

"How could I let it come to this? How could I be so blind? Now what will I do?"

Chiyo made a decision "Sasuke, you must get out of here now. Hurry!"

Sasuke didn't move, his Sharingan flaring back into life ' _What's our next move gonna be?'_

"Sasuke, why are you just standing there? I told you before that there's nothing you can do, not against this. You must leave it to me now go, run!"

' _Run? Run and leave her to face this guy alone? Run and be the self-saving coward Itachi made me out to be? There's no way that's gonna happen, not now, not ever. Still though, I've gotta get close enough to Sasori to finish him off without being touched by his Iron Sand. For all either of us know, he could've drenched the stuff in poison…'_ he looked at the disabled Father and Mother puppets, and a lightbulb went off in his head ' _That's it!'_ he made his way over to Chiyo and stood in front of her "I've got an idea. Use me as your puppet to fight him. Unlike the others my body is made of flesh and bone, his Iron Sand can't stop me."

Chiyo looked down at her useless puppet arm "I have only one arm now, I won't be able to support you like last time."

"I'll be fine, I may not be rigged with fancy weapons like the puppets you and Sasori have been bringing out but the unwavering spirit of the Uchiha clan has been drilled into my soul by my teacher, Shisui Uchiha."

Chiyo's eyes widened, then softened ' _Shisui the Lightning Teleporter eh? Alright then…'_ her chakra strings attached themselves to the back of Sasuke's body "You're right, the Third Kazekage's magnetic forces render puppets made of iron and steel useless."

"Exactly, like my teacher I can fight with the power of Raijin."

"Not this again." Sasori muttered.

"What if it is bastard?!" Sasuke charged, Sanda Sharingan flaring into life.

Sasori shot out a spike of Iron Sand.

Sasuke leapt back, being pulled back by Chiyo.

Sasori attempted to squash Sasuke with an Iron Sand cube.

Sasuke was pulled back, then charged a Chidori and flung the cube back towards Sasori, forcing him to one knee.

"How dare you…!"

"Get ready Sasori, that's just the beginning!"

Sasori leapt off the wall and back onto the cavern floor, then retracted the large forms of Iron Sand while giving the Third Kazekage Iron Sand wings. Then he attacked Sasuke with an Iron Sand pyramid spinning like a top.

Sasuke leapt out of the way as the pyramid grinded down against the cave floor, then dodged an Iron Sand rectangular prism. He then found himself dodging both at once before he slashed at the pyramid with his katana, sending it into a wall.

Sasori picked up the rectangular prism with his chakra threads.

"Over there huh?" Sasuke formed hand seals " **Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"** he launched a fireball, pushing the prism upwards and through the roof of the cavern, causing it to cave in slightly, some rocks falling.

Sasori launched the prism again.

Sasuke leapt out of the way and dodged it "Is that all you've got?!" he hit it with a Purple Thunder Blast, slamming it into the wall and causing the roof to cave in even further.

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Kakashi heard the cave in ' _That noise… what's going on? Sounds like it came from back in Sasuke and Lady Chiyo's direction, but I can't be sure. We're out of transmission range now. I've gotta hurry!'_

Naruto was about to lose it ' _We're not getting anywhere chasing after him like this._ Step it up Kakashi-sensei! Let's go, we're gonna lose sight of him if we don't get a move on!"

"It's okay. You're the whole reason he's here, don't forget that. He won't get so far ahead as to lose us completely."

"Fine then, just tell me how to take this guy down already! We're running out of time!"

"Don't worry Naruto, I've got a couple of strategies in mind but I need a little more time to work out all the angles."

"I can't hang back anymore, don't you get it?! I've gotta get to Gaara before it's too late!"

Deidara looked back and smirked ' _I don't know what their plan is, but at least the jinchuuriki is a total simpleton. I've just gotta keep him too busy to think. I wonder if those two can match my speed.'_ he sped up.

"You jerk, get back here!" Naruto charged forward.

"Naruto wait!" Kakashi went ignored ' _There's no getting through to him now. Only one choice, only one option left.'_

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Tatsu continued clashing with his clone, switching from cliff to cliff, before going down to the river below ' _Dammit, this thing's tough. Not even my Wind Style: Rasengan was able to deal him in. I haven't gotten much practice, but I guess I've gotta try something new.'_ then he heard the cave collapsing and checked on his radio "What the hell was that? Did you guys all hear that crashing noise?"

Neji checked in first " _I heard it over here as well."_

Then Ino " _It sounds like it's coming from the enemy's hideout."_

Then Lee " _I heard it too, what the hell is going on?"_

"That's what I'm trying to figure out. Neji."

" _Understood._ _ **Byakugan!"**_ Neji paused " _The enemy's hideout, it's collapsing at an alarming rate!"_

"Well what's going on over there? Did Sasuke and Lady Chiyo win or did Sasori get the better of them?"

" _It seems to be a fairly even battle."_

"So they're holding their own, I expected as much from Sasuke. Come on guys, let's get this over with!"

Tatsu's clone promptly drew its fake Dragon Blade and slashed through his torso.

Tatsu promptly disappeared in a puff of smoke, revealing it was only a Shadow Clone "Got you mother f*cker!"

The clone looked up to see Tatsu with a nature-powered Rasengan in hand.

"The fake-out is the oldest trick in the book! **Water Style: Rasengan!"** he launched a water powered Rasengan, slamming it into the clone's torso and slamming it into the ground.

The clone didn't get up again.

Tatsu knew he'd won.

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Sasori was surprised by Sasuke's abilities "That's pretty impressive skill for some Uchiha wannabe."

Sasuke was panting slightly "I _am_ an Uchiha you idiot!"

Chiyo studied Sasuke for a moment ' _His Sharingan picked up on Sasori's attack pattern in such a short amount of time, he probably doesn't even need any help from me. I never thought he would've had such ability even for an Uchiha, impressive indeed. That Shisui sure has one hell of a student.'_

' _Now then, how much can he handle?'_ deciding to test Sasuke further, Sasori launched more Iron Sand attacks.

' _Dammit!'_ Sasuke found himself forced on the defensive and evasive ' _Come on, what did Shisui tell you to do in a situation like this?'_

(Flashback)

Sasuke found Shisui standing before him in Limbo, Mangekyo Sharingan flaring "So Shisui, what's the plan for today? A brand new jutsu? How to sense chakra? What about how to fly-"

"DODGE!" Shisui summoned a giant green warrior made of chakra and started shooting out a barrage of green chakra needles.

"Shit!" Sasuke found himself comically dodging them, summoning a lightning shield using Raijin's power to protect himself "What the hell?!"

"Don't defend, DODGE!" Shisui fired even more chakra needles.

"Why?!"

"Because the most important thing for you to master is evasion." Shisui halted his assault with the chakra needles.

"So to teach me this you decided to summon a giant chakra samurai?!"

"No, to teach you this I decided to shoot you with chakra needles. As for the giant chakra warrior, I'll go into that later."

"Then why?"

"You must never let an enemy attack hit you."

"Why's that?"

"It's simple. If an offensive shinobi dies then who will protect those not suited for combat? Now I'm gonna come at you even harder, your job is to avoid any attack I throw at you."

"Hold on a minute, what's with the chakra samurai?"

"That's an ability granted by someone who wields the Mangekyo Sharingan in both eyes: it's called the Susanoo."

"Wait… so you're saying that Itachi has it?"

"If he has the Mangekyo, I wouldn't put it past him."

Sasuke frowned "I see."

(Flashback End)

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Sasuke got into a combat stance ' _Attack when I can, focus mainly on evasion.'_

' _So that's his move.'_ Sasori raised a hand.

' _Now!'_ Sasuke charged in.

Sasori launched a spike of Iron Sand.

Sasuke dodged it and kept running, then slashed at a cube of Iron Sand, causing it to collide with the pyramid and send both flying away from each other. Then he studied Sasori intently to analyze his attack pattern ' _His fingers always move just before he attacks but that should be obvious enough, he's controlling the Third Kazekage with chakra strings from his fingers. It's the weakness of every puppet master.'_

Sasori summoned back the Iron Sand pyramid and cube.

' _But thanks to my Sharingan I'm starting to follow the direction of his attacks and the pattern of the movements of his arm and fingers.'_

' _The boy's watching me like a hawk. This is taking too long, I'm going to have to expend some chakra here. Better use my ace.'_ he flexed his fingers and both Iron Sand figures collided with each other " **Iron Sand: World Order."** the Iron Sand turned into a gigantic sphere of branching spikes.

It took every ounce of Sasuke's will to keep from losing it ' _That thing is large enough itself, the range has to be enormous!'_ he got pulled back by Chiyo before one spike hit, as well as several spikes following, only to see another spike shooting towards him ' _Dammit, I don't have enough time to dodge this one!'_ he didn't, nor did he have time to dodge the oncoming onslaught of every spike at once.

Chiyo found her arm pinned underneath a slab of rock ' _Damn!'_

Sasuke stood, cut in several areas.

"Sasuke! Sasuke, are you alright?"

Sasuke's wound from the earlier Purple Thunder blast was now much larger, and he immediately gripped it in pain, recalling how he'd planned to get close enough to use a Chidori in order to finish it, only to fall to his knees.

"The poison…"

Sasori smirked "What do you say granny? There was more to it than you thought."

"So you soaked the Iron Sand in poison as well?" Chiyo watched in horror as Sasuke collapsed.

"The poison's starting to work, soon his body will go numb and he won't be able to move. Left alone she may last 3 days, but I'll finish her now!" he sent the Third Kazekage puppet itself forward to finish it, revealing a hidden blade from its sleeve "It's over, Uchiha." the Third closed in.

"Sasuke!"

" **CHIDORI!"** lightning crackled into life in Sasuke's hand and he thrusted it through the Third's chest, ripping it to pieces and leaving parts scattered everywhere, and the Iron Sand all fell to the ground, completely useless. The he leapt over to Chiyo and freed her arm from underneath the boulder "Are you alright?"

Sasori's eyes narrowed ' _What's going on? How is he still moving? Is the old hag still controlling her? No, she couldn't generate such complicated movements, not in her condition. Somehow, that girl is moving on her own. But how? I know my poison affected him.'_

"Hold still." Sasuke got rid of any excess rubble surrounding them.

"But how-?" Chiyo stammered.

"I used the antidote, good thing it worked." Sasuke looked over to an empty vial that lay amongst the sand.

"An antidote? But when did you get that?"

"Back when Kakashi sent his ninja hound to guide us here. Ino gave him that vile that she made the same time she made the antidote for Kankuro. According to a note she gave me, she barely had enough material to make three doses of antidote. She gave one of them to Kankuro to cure him of Sasori's poison. She knew that our enemy would use poison but knew that with Tatsu and Lee in our squad we'd be faster, so she sent the rest with us in hypodermic form."

"Of course, and that's how you-"

"Yeah, and I used one of the doses on myself but apparently it only works for about three minutes. While it works, whatever poison in my system is converted into harmless protein."

"I understand."

"That's why I didn't try to fight back as much as I would've liked, I figured letting Sasori find out I had this was a bad idea. I knew he'd reveal his plan once he let his guard down, I had to take the chance. So I waited until the last possible moment." he held up the last vial "This is it, this is the last dose. I want you to keep this with you."

"Right." Chiyo made to grab it, but winced.

"You're hurt. Hold on a second, I only know the basics but it'll have to do for now."

Sasori watched the exchange ' _Wait a second, there's no way the poison was neutralized.'_ he thought back to his fight with Kankuro ' _Don't tell me they analyzed the poison I used in that fight. Impossible, even if they were able to somehow isolate the individual components they wouldn't be able to prepare an antidote that easily. The antidote is prohibitively difficult to make, if there's even the slightest mistake… even I needed to reference the mix ratio table and I_ _ **created**_ _it.'_

Sasuke's hands began glowing with green energy "I only know the basics but it should be enough at least for now. For the next three minutes or so his poison won't affect me so we don't have a lot of time to finish this."

' _Did the witch do this? No, I've got more medical skill than anyone in the Sand village, certainly more than the old lay. There's no way she could've cracked a poison this intricate. There's no way this Uchiha kid is a medical ninja too. If memory serves, aside from the old hag they're all from the Leaf village. The Leaf's current Hokage is Tsunade, she's known as a world-class medical ninja. That's it, she made the antidote.'_

Chiyo gripped her fist "Thank you Sasuke, my hand feels fine now."

"Good." then Sasuke suddenly started panting heavily.

' _Powerful attacks, evasion, masterful lightning manipulation, even some minor skills in healing, all of that must use a considerable amount of chakra. His body is probably nearing its limit as it is.'_

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Deidara looked back to where Naruto and Kakashi were still chasing him ' _So annoying, this is taking so long I'll never go back to my man Sasori. I know, I'll use the rest of my Detonating Clay and show him what a real artist can do. However, if I'm gonna do that then I'll have to get rid of the Copy Ninja first. Might've taken a while, but this is worth the wait.'_ he then unleashed a large barrage of exploding crickets.

Kakashi was forced on the evasive as they closed in ' _What? These aren't like the bird ones from before, they're smaller. Is that so they won't get picked off by shuriken? Why so many? Judging from the size of their hind legs, I'd say their special ability is jumping. Well then I guess it's going to come down to a battle of speed.'_ he channeled chakra into his feet and blitzed forward, only to be cut off by some of the exploding crickets. He avoided the blast and leapt upwards, only for more to detonate in front of him, forcing him back "Naruto, wait up!"

Naruto growled "You're slowing me down Kakashi-sensei, I'm going on ahead!"

"Don't do anything reckless!"

"Yeah yeah I know!" and he went on ahead.

"This might be a bit of a sticky situation.

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Sasuke had been trying to patch himself up ' _I've stopped the major bleeding at least, now I've gotta focus as much of my chakra as I can on attacking. We've only got three minutes to do this.'_

Chiyo picked up the vial of antidote ' _3 minutes or we won't have another chance.'_

"We're running out of time, do you think you're in any shape for a fight?"

"Let's go." Chiyo slipped the antidote into her sleeve "It's time we put an end to this."

"I couldn't agree more."

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Kakashi's mind was racing ' _Gotta think, I can't waste time having a staring contest with these things. If I leave Naruto on his own then he could lose control at any moment.'_ he leapt back, but they followed him ' _They won't let me fall back and build up enough speed to break past them, they're maintaining this distance. In that case…'_ he leapt down, then leapt up and retreated in the opposite direction, with the crickets following right behind him ' _Come on guys, stay right on my tail…'_ he finally ricocheted off of a log and charged forward again ' _There they go…'_ then several of them stuck onto his back ' _Crap…'_ then he got caught in an explosion.

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Deidara noticed the explosion and smirked "That takes care of him."

Naruto noticed it too "That wasn't… Kakashi-sensei…" he stopped when he saw that Deidara stopped.

"At last, now it's just the two of us."

Naruto let out a low growl.

"Don't scowl like that, and here I was about to let you see your friend." his clay bird opened its mouth, revealing Gaara's corpse."

Naruto's growl grew louder.

"Oh that's right, you're a jinchuuriki too. I bet seeing him like this drives you crazy." he was right.

"Give him back… RIGHT NOW!" Naruto was about to charge in a rage.

Then an arm stopped him "Don't do it!"

Naruto looked to see Kakashi standing beside him "Kakashi-sensei…"

Deidara let out a groan "Oh man, I could've sworn you just bought it back there."

Kakashi smirked beneath his mask "Sorry, but it wasn't the real me that blew up. Next time you should teach your critters to tell the difference between the original and a Shadow Clone, that is if there is a next time."

Deidara flew upwards.

' _Wait for it…'_

"DON'T MOVE!" Naruto exploded.

"I could say the same to you. It'll be alright, we _will_ get Gaara back so calm down.

' _My man Sasori is going to yell at me again for not being prepared. What can I say, planning on every insignificant detail ahead of time just isn't my style.'_ Deidara reached for his pouch ' _I prefer to stay flexible dealing with unexpected situations, developing that kind of sophisticated mindset is the mark of a true artist. Let's see, what to do now…'_

"Listen Naruto, you're not used to fighting an opponent like this. That's not all, you're a close-combat to mid-range fighter. He excels at long range, that makes him your worst enemy. There are only two ways to beat this kind of foe. One is to force him to fight up close and personal, your only other option is to beat him at his own game."

"How are we supposed to do that?" asked Naruto.

"Depending on which strategy is chosen, you'd either need a long range specialist or someone on your team who can use long range ninjutsu to support that kind of distance combat."

"I've got all sorts of long range stuff!"

"Naruto, there's a difference between long range and mid range. Anyway, if you don't have one or the other then there's no way you'll beat him. Period. Now if you have the superior intellect of Shikamaru then that would be a different story."

"Spit it out already, which one are you?!"

"Oh me? While I have a superior intellect like Shikamaru I'm a jonin, and I can sustain long range battle."

"Then we meet all the conditions right?!"

"That's why I told you to calm down."

"Well let's hurry up and get to it!"

"It's not as simple as it sounds. We can't just chase after him, he'll never leave himself open. He infiltrated the Hidden Sand Village and defeated Gaara all by himself, and even more dangerous he's a member of the Akatsuki. It's a tough challenge, all we can do is try and punch a hole in his defences. We're gonna have to work together."

Naruto saw Deidara flying away.

"If you were following my train of thought then keep listening, I've got a plan."

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The battle in the hideout had grown quiet.

"Okay Sasuke, let's get him." Chiyo decided.

Sasuke nodded "Right."

Sasori made a decision of his own and started unbuttoning his Akatsuki robe ' _Fine, I'll admit it. I figured he'd be skilled being Itachi's younger brother, but he's more impressive than I thought. Never thought I'd see the Third Kazekage destroyed, and it's probably a waste to use other Human Puppets._ I haven't been forced to solve a problem this way since I joined the Akatsuki, I wonder how long it's been."

"What the hell?"

Chiyo's eyes narrowed "Now I see, the reason he looks exactly the same as the day he left. Of course age doesn't affect him, the reason is staring us right in the face."

A thick coil emerged from Sasori's stomach, and he stood atop a section of it of it as it pierced the ground "Oh yes, it's been awhile indeed since I last used myself."

Sasuke's eyes narrowed "He's actually a Human Puppet himself?"

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Kakashi, with Naruto beside him, continued pursuing Deidara "You all set?"

Naruto nodded "Yeah I got it, don't worry."

"Here we go." Kakashi closed his eyes and he began building chakra.

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Sasuke studied Sasori intently ' _Hold on, if his entire army is a puppet then that means all of the hidden weapons inside his body must be covered in poison as well.'_

"Something wrong?" asked Sasori, his eyes radiating malice.

' _It's already been over a minute since I gave myself the antidote…'_

"I'm sorry, weren't you supposed to finish me off? Well if you aren't going to attack me…"

' _The effects of the antidote will wear off in less than 2 minutes, that's all I've got. Somehow I've gotta get in close enough to defeat him, and I've gotta do it fast.'_

"Then I'll have to make the first move!" Sasori revealing flamethrowers in his hands and shot out two blasts of fire.

Sasuke dodged the blast and hid behind a boulder, with Chiyo mimicking his movements.

"You think you can hide from me?" Sasori continued shooting out flames "Well, what are you going to do now?"

Sasuke began charging lightning into his hand, and once the flames subsided, he leapt out from behind the boulder " **Lightning Style: Purple Thunder!"** he fired a blast of lightning.

Sasori unleashed more flames, dissipating the lightning.

Sasuke took cover behind another boulder ' _It's gonna be tough getting close to him now.'_

Chiyo was feeling the heat ' _Such intensity to these flames…'_

Sasuke leapt behind the same boulder as Chiyo "90 seconds left." he leapt on.

"Yes." Chiyo leapt on.

"Time to die with!" Sasori attempted to roast her, only for her to substitute with some rubble.

"Let's finish this boy!" Chiyo attempted to attack Sasori with the head of the Third Kazekage.

"As you wish." Sasori incinerated the head "I figured as much, you attached a chakra thread during our last go around."

' _That trick won't work a second time.'_

"Too bad for you." Sasori unleashed his flamethrowers again.

Sasuke's mind was racing ' _There's no time!'_

"What's wrong? Don't wanna play?" one of the scrolls on his back disappeared.

' _The antidote will only last for another minute.'_

"Alright then…" Sasori switched from fire to water blasts, destroying the boulders.

"Lady Chiyo, move!" Sasuke leapt back, with Chiyo following his lead.

Another scroll on Sasori's back disappeared "How long do you plan to dance around?"

' _20 seconds left…'_

"Fine, be that way." Sasori unleashed his poison-coated stinger and stabbed Sasuke in his waist.

' _15 seconds left…'_

"Are you alright Sasuke?" Chiyo called.

"Die!" the blades on Sasori's back began rotating outwards as he charged.

"Lady Chiyo!" Sasuke charged, wincing as he did ' _The antidote is working, if I can just endure the pain a little longer…'_

Sasori looked back and noticed Sasuke yanking on his coiled rope ' _Useless…'_ he kept flying onwards.

' _5 seconds left…'_

Sasori was closing in on Chiyo.

' _4 seconds…'_

Sasori stopped right before ripping Chiyo to shreds.

Chiyo looked at Sasuke in wonder "Sasuke…"

"GET THE HELL OVER HERE!" Sasuke yanked Sasori towards him ' _3 seconds… 2…'_ he drew his sword, channeled his lightning chakra into it, and stabbed Sasori in the stomach, the lightning ripping Sasori's body to pieces and pushing out his core, which stopped moving. He then fell to his knees in exhaustion "We were able to defeat him just before the antidote wore off…" he took a deep breath and gave a relieved smile "We really did it, didn't we Lady Chiyo?"

"Sasuke… well done child."

Sasuke gave a thumbs up as he sheathed his sword.

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Deidara looked back and frowned ' _I don't like this, the kid's cooled off. What are they planning?'_

Sure enough, Naruto's eyes were back to blue "Hey sensei, you ready or what?"

"Hold your horses." Kakashi waved him off "Remember, I don't have as much chakra as you. It's going to take time."

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Clutching his wound, Sasuke started limping forward, Sharingan fading "Alright then, now let's-" he froze when he heard something, then looked back "F*ck."

Sasori's body quickly reassembled itself "What are you so happy about?"

"That's right." Chiyo quickly retrieved her puppet arm and reattached it, cleaning out the now harmless Iron Sand "The fight has only begun." she pulled out a scroll "I forbade even myself from using this jutsu, I never imagined I would use it again but against you I must." she formed a hand seal and opened the scroll "Let's finish this here and now." she summoned 10 white puppets.

"It's said the ability of a puppet master is measured by the number of puppets they can use, I expect no less from you grandmother. Granny Chiyo's secret multiple digits, I've heard tell of their glory. You once destroyed an entire fortress with them. Secret White Move: Chikamatsu's 10 puppets, the first puppet master Monzaemon's 10 masterpieces. An exquisite collection. However…" he pulled a scroll from his back, summoning MANY more puppets all at once, chakra threads emerging from his chest "I used these to destroy an entire nation!"

' _He's grown so powerful…'_

' _It's embarrassing really, how long does it take to finish off one little brat and an old bag? I never thought I'd have to resort to my best puppets.'_ his puppets all braced themselves "Secret Red Move: Performance of 100 puppets. It's show time!"

"Sasuke." Chiyo didn't look at him "That antidote of yours has already worn off, stay out of this."

Sasuke shot her a smirk, catching her off guard, then turned back to Sasori, his Sanda Sharingan flaring back into life "It's not in me to give up, quitting isn't an option and it never has been."

"...How silly of me, you've inherited the strong will of Shisui the Lightning Teleporter. What's say we make this the finale though, are you ready child?"

"You know I am."

"Here they come."

"Die!" Sasori thrusted his 100 puppets forward.

"Get ready!" Chiyo sent her puppets forward, slicing through one puppet after another.

"Gotcha!" Sasuke summoned Raijin's power and slashed through puppet after puppet.

" **Three Treasures Suction Crush!"** Chiyo had three puppets in a triangle formation, sucking in and crushing every puppet in its path, then shot them out from the back.

" **Thunder Style: Lightning Chain Whip!"** using a thread made of pure lightning chakra, Sasuke spun the Raijin sword around like a chain, slashing through every puppet in its path, but he felt his chakra fading ' _As cool as these Raijin-powered moves are, they take up a lot of chakra. There's too many of them left, I've gotta find a way to take them all out in one shot.'_ he dodged several puppets and blades.

Chiyo found the vacuum overloaded ' _There's too many of them.'_ the trio of puppets was divided, but Chiyo stopped one of the red puppets from catching Sasuke off guard "You alright Sasuke?"

"I'm fine."

"Good, stay sharp."

"Right."

' _We've definitely thinned down Sasori's puppets, but conversely it looks like he's focusing more intently on the ones that remain. Only one antidote left, and if either one of us takes any damage then we're going to be in a lot of trouble.'_ then she promptly got cut along her shoulder.

"Lady Chiyo!"

"No!" her white puppet punched out the red one.

"Are you alright?"

"Don't worry about me Sasuke, right now you just focus on Sasori. I'll keep the other puppets in check."

"Right. I've got one jutsu that should end it, but I've gotta get close."

"Then go, I'll back you up!"

"Right!" Sasuke charged, both hands crackling with electricity. He dodged the blades of several red puppets at once and charged at Sasori himself "Take this! **Thunder Style: Electric Binding!"** he hit Sasori on both arms with two blasts of lightning.

Sasori's whole body crackled with electricity and slammed him into the wall behind him, wires made of pure lightning binding him to the wall, leaving him unable to move or attack, causing all of his remaining puppets to fall, useless.

Sasuke was panting heavily, tired but triumphant "We did it… he can't move anymore, that's a lightning style sealing jutsu that traps every ounce of chakra in the victim's body. He can't use his chakra threads now, all of his puppets are useless now. You hear me Sasori? This battle is over."

"It's over…" then Chiyo fell to her knees.

"Lady Chiyo!" Sasuke rushed over to her "Quick, use the antidote." then he saw a puppet rising behind her attempting to stab her with a poison-coated sword.

Blood spurted into the air, and Chiyo looked on in horror ' _No…'_

Sasuke had taken the hit for her, taking a poison-coated sword through the chest "Sasori… I was careless…" then he looked back "Lady Chiyo… how're you holding up?"

"Still worried about her even with a sword in your gut?" Sasori thrusted the sword further into Sasuke's wound.

' _Sasori, but how?'_ then Chiyo froze ' _No, it can't be!'_ she looked at Sasori's sealed body ' _Of course, so that's it!'_

"If you're knowledgeable of medical ninjutsu boy then you should fully understand how dire your situation is."

"Shut up…" Sasuke growled, his Sanda Sharingan deactivating against his will.

"You're quite courageous boy, but how much longer can you really hold on?" Sasori thrusted the sword deeper.

Sasuke rested a hand over the wound, channeling a small bit of healing chakra into the wound.

' _What? He stopped the bleeding while my sword is still through him. Even if he only knows basic medical ninjutsu, he's good.'_

"Lady Chiyo… don't worry about me… I'll be fine…" Sasuke spat out some blood "Take the antidote…"

"But Sasuke…" Chiyo murmured.

"I'll never… let my comrades… shed blood… that's my nindo… my ninja way… now take the damn thing…"

Sasori smirked "It appears the poison is starting to take effect, you see my sword is also coated with poison just in case."

' _My body's going numb from the poison, I'm losing control of whatever chakra I have left…'_

' _Sasuke…'_ popping off the cap to the antidote, Chiyo stuck it in Sasuke's leg.

"I see, so that's the antidote."

"Lady Chiyo…" Sasuke coughed up more blood as he watcher her fall to her knees "Are you… okay?"

' _I can't believe these people would choose death to save someone else's life, they're so stupid it's laughable.'_ Sasori thrusted his sword deeper.

Sasuke gripped the sword with whatever strength he had left "I won't… give up…"

' _I don't get it, how can he be this strong?'_

Sasuke looked to where Chiyo was struggling "Come on… hang in there… just a little longer…"

' _If it's a battle of strength then there's no way I'll outlast him. Fine then…'_ Sasori detached his arm, revealing another blade hidden where the forearm should be, then retreated back.

' _He's planning for a final strike… I've only got one shot at this…'_

"Now you die!" Sasori charged.

Sasuke flexed his fingers, chakra being channeled from them.

Sasori stopped in his tracks, the Mother and Father puppets on each side of them, both stabbing through his core "What… how…?" he cranked his head to each side.

"You lowered your guard… at the last moment… Sasori…" Chiyo rasped out.

"What…?" Sasori looked and saw a sealing jutsu coming from one of the white puppets.

Sasuke smirked weakly "And now… you can't move… anymore…"

"Even though your body is now that of a puppet, you still need a human element to control it chakra." explained Chiyo "It's your weakness."

"We couldn't help… noticing… that part from… the left side… of the puppet's chest… was gone… right before… I sealed your body… you switched your core… into another puppet…"

"All of these puppet bodies, they're just a collection of dolls. But your true nature is the part inside your chest that produces your chakra."

"Now that's been destroyed… you're finished…" then Sasuke promptly collapsed.

"Sasuke…" Chiyo crawled over to him ' _He doesn't look good, I've got to try and close his wound while I simultaneously pull out the sword.'_ she began healing the wound with one hand while pulling out the sword with her other hand.

Sasuke let out a pained groan through gritted teeth.

"Stay with me now, just a little further." she completely pulled the sword out and quickly tossed it away.

Sasori was still cocky as ever "That won't work, there's too much damage. He'll die even without the effects of the poison, he's lot too much blood. I'm well aware that you're a medical ninja, which is why I aimed for a spot that's impossible to heal."

The energy from her palms turned to a deep blue "I've already finished the first aid treatment with medical ninjutsu, what I'm doing for him now is something very different."

"What?"

"I'm harnessing my own life force and conducting it into his body."

"No, it can't be…"

"A reanimation ninjutsu."

"A reanimation ninjutsu?"

"This jutsu of mine, I spent many years creating it especially for you and I'm the only one who can use it. Using this jutsu life can be breathed into anyone, even puppets."

Sasori's eyes widened.

"That is, in exchange for the life of the one who uses it. Oh well, but after all that's happened I suppose that's an impossible dream now."

"Nonsense… what utter nonsense… tell me grandmother, when did you become so senile?"

Chiyo stopped the jutsu when she saw Sasuke coming too "Sasuke, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I think so…" Sasuke breathed "Just low on chakra… what about you?"

"Peculiar…" Sasori noted "That reanimation ninjutsu or whatever it's called, I thought the caster was supposed to die after bringing someone else back to life."

"Sasuke's injuries were severe but she wasn't dead when I used the ninjutsu, so even though I took a risk my life was spared." explained Chiyo.

"How very unfortunate, how even more pointless. But come to think of it, you both seem to love doing such pointless things. Even if my own relative, my grandmother, died right here, I wouldn't feel a thing. My heart is just like this body, over the years I've killed hundreds, thousands of people, and she'd be no different from the rest. Things are much simpler than you might think."

"Tell me…" Sasuke rasped out, his voice hoarse "What do you think… human life is? What is… family to you?"

"Is that really how a shinobi should talk?"

"How can you… treat people this way?"

"Sasuke, that's enough." Chiyo said softly "The teachings and customs of the Sand village did this, we all share the blame for making him what he is today."

"Deep down inside don't you wanna be like me?" Sasori continued "If you do then I'm sure you'll understand just a little of what I'm talking about. This body won't fall apart or age, I'm bound to an unlimited lifespan. A puppet can be recreated over and over, with puppets you can make as many people as you want, if you want to that is. Don't get me wrong it's not just about quantity, a serious collection is based on quality."

"What the hell are you?" Sasuke snarled.

"I would describe myself as a human being who could not become a complete puppet. Yes, I am an unfinished puppet whose lifeless frame still contains a beating heart at its core. I am neither dead nor am I alive. The end is near, but first I'm going to do something pointless too. You wanted to know about Orochimaru didn't you?"

Sasuke froze.

"Go to the Tenchi Bridge in the Village Hidden in the Grass 10 days from now at noon."

"What happens there?"

"One of Orochimaru's henchmen is working for me as a spy, and that's where I'm supposed to rendezvous with him."

"I see…" using his sword as a crutch, Sasuke stood straight and smiled "Thank you for telling me this Sasori, and now I'm gonna do something that we both may consider pointless." his smiled faded "Sasori, the true source of your power lies in your soul. You tried to erase your soul by becoming a puppet, but you didn't fully succeed. I know this for a fact, you could've dodged that last attack but you didn't. Your undying soul dwells in the puppets you created. Your art, the puppets that you created, will live on forever as long as future generations of puppet masters still remain to inherit the soul that resides within them. This is precisely the true form of art that you've sought for this long."

' _The soul of the creator dwells within huh?_ Perhaps… you're right… Thank you… Sasuke Uchiha…" and with that, he collapsed, along with his Father and Mother puppets.

' _He's gone._ Well Lady Chiyo, it's really over."

Chiyo just looked at Sasori's body "The wrong person was defeated in battle today, it should've been me instead. Like you said, Sasori anticipated our final attack but didn't even attempt to dodge it. He chose to let his defences down."

"So he wanted this."

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Naruto continued pursuing Deidara "Kakashi-sensei, you about ready yet?"

"My preparations are complete." Kakashi opened his left eye, revealing a change.

"So that's what you were telling me about?"

"That's right, my new Mangekyo Sharingan. Now let's go Naruto."

"Right."

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Sasuke made his way out, then stopped and caught Chiyo as she collapsed "I've got you. Hold still." he began administering first aid ' _This is all I can do, it won't save her, not to mention I've still gotta do something about Sasori's poison. Ino's the only one of us who can make the antidote, and I've run out of all of the stuff she gave me. Maybe if I can get her to Ino and get her the ingredients needed then we might just make it in time._ Come on, let's pick up the others and get back to the village so she can make another batch of the antidote."

"No…" Chiyo rasped out "There's something I must do… my job isn't done yet…"

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Naruto looked at Kakashi in wonder ' _A Mangekyo Sharingan?'_

Kakashi noticed Naruto staring at him "What is it?"

"Kakashi-sensei, don't sweat it if this doesn't work because if it doesn't then I'll be sure to settle things once and for all."

"Yeah, I'm sure you will if it comes to that."

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Tatsu looked down as his clone finally dissolved ' _A worthy adversary, but I shouldn't expect any less from a clone of me. Plus it did point out a lot of faults I have, I'd better work on those when we get back.'_ then he checked with the others "You guys here? Did you beat them?"

" _We're all good."_

"Good, then let's find Naruto and the others and back them up."

" _We're already on our way."_

"Good. I've locked onto your chakra signatures, I'll see you guys in a minute."

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Sasuke lead Chiyo out of the cave and towards the path along the river ' _I shouldn't be surprised she was lagging behind, with Sasori's poison already working its magic it's a wonder she hasn't passed out already. It's only her sheer willpower keeping her conscious. Whatever she says she has to do, it must be something big._ Hold on a second." he set her down gently, then rubbed his thumb against his wound and formed hand seals " **Summoning Jutsu!"** he slammed his hand on the ground and summoned his personal hawk "Follow after Naruto and Kakashi." and they flew on.

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Deidara looked back to see Naruto and Kakashi pursuing him ' _Still on my tail I see.'_

"Time to give it a try." Kakashi decided "Naruto, you'd better fall back a little."

"Right, got it." Naruto fell back so he wouldn't be caught by Kakashi's jutsu.

Kakashi's Mangekyo Sharingan flared " **Kamui!"**

Deidara suddenly found his surroundings beginning to warp, mainly around his arm "What is this? What's going on?" he suddenly noticed Kakashi's eye "No!"

"I've got you now." Kakashi attempted to suck Deidara into the center of the warping point.

Deidara struggled, but he managed to escape.

"Dammit." Kakashi tried again, centering on Deidara's left arm.

"My arm's being sucked into oblivion by this damned jutsu!" his arm got completely ripped off and sucked off, before the jutsu subsided.

' _I missed, I'm still not very good at controlling the size or position of the barrier space. But I'll get it right this time!'_ his Mangekyo Sharingan flared back into existence as he tried to use Kamui again.

As the path through the river subsided, leading to a forest area, Deidara's clay bird flew upwards, taking him out of the jutsu's range.

Kakashi was forced to subside the jutsu "Dammit, I let him get away."

"Good, I shook him off."

"Maybe him but not me mother f*cker!" Naruto appeared above him, a spiralling crimson Rasengan in hand, and he thrusted it forward.

Deidara dodged it and fell back into the trees, but the head of his clay bird was ripped off.

" **Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** Naruto formed some clones and they all caught the head, then gently lowered it down "Gaara!" they all scraped away the clay, while one of them went over to see how Kakashi was doing "Kakashi-sensei, you alright?"

"Yeah… I think so…" Kakashi panted.

"Don't worry Gaara, we'll get you out." Naruto and two of his clones finally tore through the clay "Gaara!"

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Tatsu, Lee, Neji and Ino reunited along the path, but realized that they were out of range to contact Kakashi with the wireless radio, so they decided to hurry and pick up the pace so they could rendezvoused with the rest.

Even if one of the Akatsuki was down, there was still one left.

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"Gaara!" Naruto and his clones finally got through to Gaara "Talk to me." nothing "Hey come on, Gaara." still nothing. Now he had to face the grim truth "Gaara!"

Deidara looked out from his hiding place and smirked ' _I told you didn't I? Gaara's dead. It worked perfectly, using the Kazekage as bait to lure out the Leaf jinchuuriki.'_ then he looked over at Kakashi ' _What I didn't plan on was that one coming along too. First it was my left arm crushed by the Sand jinchuuriki. Now my right arm too? I can't use any jutsu. It's over. I never thought I'd meet anyone with visual jutsu as powerful as Itachi's. This jinchuuriki is nothing, the problem is how to deal with Kakashi.'_

"You will pay for this!"

"Yeah yeah, maybe someday I'll give you a rematch kid."

"You've let down your guard." was all Kakashi said.

"Wha-?" Deidara looked back ' _Dammit!'_

"YOU SON OF A BITCH!" a furious Naruto slugged Deidara in the face and formed a quick hand seal " **Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** he summoned several clones that grabbed Deidara and pinned him down.

Once Deidara hit the ground, he was stuck "Crap."

The real Naruto kick-stomped Deidara in the gut, then repeatedly punched him in the face, refusing to stop even as his knuckles were covered in blood "DIE!" he formed a crimson spiralling ball of chakra " **Tornado Rasengan!"** he drove it into Deidara's stomach, only for clay to fly into the air instead of blood.

Kakashi was the first to realize it ' _It's clay… a Substitution Jutsu!'_

"SON OF A C** G****ING F**** B****! WHY THE F*** DOES ALL THIS F****** S*** HAPPEN TO ME?! F*** MY LIFE! ALWAYS SURROUNDED BY MISERABLE F****** C****S! LIKE THIS WHOLE WORLD JUST LIKES TO BEND ME OVER AND F*** ME IN THE A**! LIKE I'M SOME SORT OF C** D*******! WELL AS FAR AS I CARE, THESE MISERABLE C**** CAN HAVE A F****** S******* WITH A GODDAMN MOTHER-F****** PIG!" Naruto exploded, then looked back to see Kakashi gaping at him, jaw-dropped and mask stretched thin "What?"

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Deidara snapped out of his stupor from his hiding place in a bush ' _Well that was certainly interesting, even I didn't know a couple of those.'_ then he froze ' _Someone's coming.'_

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Naruto froze "Kakashi-sensei."

"Above." Kakashi looked up.

"What's-?" Naruto looked up and saw a summoning hawk "Oh."

Then Sasuke dropped down with Chiyo "Finally caught up to you guys."

"Nice work finding us."

"We just followed the path of crap being blown up."

"Sorry about that, but did you do it?"

"Yeah, his remains are in this scroll."

"Good."

"It looks like you're still having some trouble here though." Chiyo noted.

Kakashi nodded "Unfortunately."

"And what about Gaara, where's he?" Chiyo looked back to where Gaara's body was being carried by two of Naruto's clones "Alright."

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Deidara watched the scene in disbelief ' _I don't believe it, my man Sasori was beaten by that duckass-haired little brat and the old hag. Leaving a thing of eternal beauty for the future? Yeah right, all he did was get killed. He was overconfident about that puppet, the fool exposed his weakness. Oh well, it was still an ending worthy of an artist.'_ he backed out of the buses "Alright then, what's my next move?"

"Hey."

"How's it going-" Deidara froze, then looked up to see Tatsu's group in front of him ' _F*ck._ How'd you guys find me so quick?"

"Two ways actually, Neji's got the Byakugan and I'm a sensor type."

"And you guys used those eyes to sneak up from my blind spot, this is my first time seeing it in person. I'd be curious to see how it differs from Itachi's Sharingan, but I think my escaping takes precedence at the moment."

"You've got Naruto and Sasuke in front of you, Lee and me behind you. We're Team Dragon, strongest four jonin the village has to offer. You're not going anywhere."

Deidara promptly vanished.

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The others heard the clash.

Sasuke activated his Sharingan "It's Tatsu's team, they're taking on the blonde Akatsuki guy from before."

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" **Water Style: Raging Waves!"** Ino shot out a stream of water.

"I don't think so!" Deidara dodged the blast of water, then a kick from Lee, only to see Ino firing another blast of water ' _Not bad.'_

" **Wind Style: Skybound Wind!"** Tatsu fired a sharp blast of wind ' _We're all running on fumes at this point, almost completely out of chakra.'_

' _Looks like I won't be able to outrun them.'_ Deidara dodged several kicks from Lee.

" **Eight Trigrams Air Palm!"** Neji sent Deidara flying into a tree trunk.

Deidara dodged another blast of wind from Tatsu and another blast of water from Ino, then took off along the tree branches, with the others right on his tail ' _Persistent bunch aren't they? Now where was it?'_ he looked around and saw the body of his clay bird ' _Down there.'_ he dropped to the ground.

"Stay on your toes, we don't know what he's planning." Tatsu warned.

"Be careful everyone, he's a long range fighter who uses explosives." Kakashi told them.

Deidara bit off some of the clay and began chewing on it "I think it's about time I reveal my ultimate work of art." he swallowed, and then began swelling up.

Neji checked with his Byakugan "He's concentrating all of his chakra into a single point. _Oh no._ Everyone get out of here immediately!"

"I've got you!" Tatsu slammed both hands into the ground " **Earth Style: Mud Wall!"** a huge chunk of earth rose in front of the group, the intention being to shield them.

"Art… is an explosion!" then Deidara was engulfed in a fiery explosion. When the blast subsided, there was no sign of him and in his place was a large round crater.

Kakashi finished warping the blast away and his jutsu subsided, then his eye turned back to the normal Sharingan and he sighed "It worked… just in time…" then he fell back.

Naruto caught him "Kakashi-sensei, hey are you alright?"

"Not really…"

"I don't get it, what'd you do?"

"Sent the explosion… off into a different space…"

"So basically the guy's been defeated?"

"More importantly, is everyone okay?"

"We're fine." Tatsu spoke for them, then looked at Gaara "Most of us anyway. Ino, do you think…?"

Ino nodded "I'll need a wider space to work though."

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They moved to an open field area.

Ino tried to resuscitate Gaara, but after a few moments she stood and shook her head "I'm sorry."

"Dammit…" Naruto gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, tears falling freely "Why? Why is it always Gaara? If he dies like this… He's the Kazekage! He _just_ became the Kazekage!"

Chiyo breathed a deep sigh "Try to calm yourself, Naruto Uzumaki-"

"YOU SHUT UP!" Naruto rounded on her in his furious grief, tears streaming down his face even more freely than before "Just shut up, if all of you Sand shinobi hadn't put a monster inside of Gaara then none of this would've ever happened to him! Did you ever even consider how Gaara felt?! Did you ever even _ask_?! You call us jinchuuriki, well what gives you the right to label us?! Who are you to decide that fate for someone else?!" he finally hung his head, his tears of anger turning into sobs of grief "I couldn't save the Third… and I can't save Gaara either… for three years I've trained so hard, but nothing has changed!"

Regretting ever sealing Shukaku into Gaara during his infancy, Chiyo slowly made her way over towards Gaara's body and knelt down in front of it, then placed her hands on him as her hands began glowing with blue energy.

Sasuke's eyes widened, then softened sadly "Lady Chiyo…"

"I don't get it, what's she trying to do?" asked Naruto.

Neji stared with his Byakugan active ' _Medical ninjutsu? No…'_

"Leave him alone will ya, what the f*ck do you think you're doing?!"

Sasuke held out an arm in front of Naruto ' _She's exchanging her life for his.'_

"Sasuke, what-?"

"It's going to be alright Naruto, she's bringing Gaara back."

Naruto's eyes widened, along with Ino and Lee, while Kakashi and Guy's hardened "She's bringing him back? What are you talking about? I mean, how is that even possible?"

"This is a jutsu that only lady Chiyo knows, it's special and it is for a reason."

"Wait, are you serious?"

Neji studied this even further ' _Such a convenient jutsu should not be possible. That chakra flow, there's no question…'_

Kakashi knew fully well what was happening ' _There's no question, it comes at a considerable risk.'_

Chiyo could feel that something wasn't right, even for this jutsu "No… not enough chakra… left…" then her eyes widened when she saw it.

Naruto sat in front of her, hands out "You can use my chakra, take as much as you need to. That will work, won't it granny? Please?" his tone and eyes reflected the clear desperation he was feeling.

Chiyo reflected on Kakashi telling her about Naruto's bond with Gaara "Place your hands on top of mine, son…"

"Alright…" despite being somewhat hesitant, Naruto placed his hands on top of Chiyo's, causing the blue energy to increase.

Chiyo then thought back to Kakashi telling her of how Naruto had the ability to make friends with almost everyone he met, and she smiled softly "In this world of shinobi, created by frivolous old people, it's a great comfort to know that new souls like yourself have come along. Up until now, everything I have done in my life has been wrong. But at least here in my final hour, I can finally do something right for a change. The Sand village and the Leaf village…" she looked up at the sky above "May the future that awaits them be different from the way things were in our time." she looked down "This special power of yours that Kakashi spoke of, that power will change the future dramatically. Become a Hokage the likes of which the world has never seen before. And as for you Sasuke, Ino…"

"Yes?" both Ino and Sasuke looked up.

"In the future, help those whom you hold closest to your hearts, not some old grandmother with one foot in the grave. You're a lot like Ino, so few women possess such strong spirit. You will surpass your master as a kunoichi, of that I have absolutely no doubt. Sasuke, you possess such a strong will and a kind and caring soul for an Uchiha. You will surpass your master as well, I feel absolutely no doubt about that. Naruto, do an old woman a favor will you?"

"What is it?" Naruto looked up.

"You are the only person in the world who knows the extent of Gaara's pain. He also knows your pain. Please, look after Gaara."

Naruto looked at Gaara's form, then back at Chiyo, and smiled slightly "Sure."

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"Gaara!"

' _Who is that? Who's calling me? Who is it?'_ his vision went from blurry to clear, and he could see the hand he held in front of his face ' _Is it him? No, it's just my hand again. My hand…'_ he looked ahead and saw a younger form of him ' _Is that me? Who am I? I… I am…'_ he felt a hand on his shoulder and turned in that direction.

Naruto stood beside him, a relieved smile stretching across his face "Gaara…"

"Naruto…" Gaara looked around and saw them surrounded by the Leaf groups, Temari, Kankuro, and a massive group of Sand ninja "What is this…?"

"They all kept running to help you, you had them worried half to death."

"Lord Gaara!" one of them rushed forward "Sir, are you alright?" she received a nod, and everyone rejoiced.

Naruto grinned "You sure had us worried."

"No kidding." then Kankuro strolled over "Caused us a whole ton of grief there little brother."

"Will you two quit putting on airs already? Gaara's the Kazekage remember? Show a little respect you nitwits." Temari scolded.

"How about when you finally hook up with Shika." Tatsu pointed out.

"Shut up!" Temari pushed him back "Gaara talk to me, how do you feel?"

"I'm…" Gaara tried to stand, but failed.

"Easy. You shouldn't get up too quickly, your body hasn't completely recovered from the rigamortis yet."

"I see…" Gaara looked to see Naruto tumbling away "What happened?"

"Your fangirls." Naruto said dryly "I get I might not be the most popular guy but come on, give me a break."

"Don't sweat it." Kankuro knelt down in front of him "Women always go weak in the knees for that cool elite type of guy. What can you do, am I right?"

"I'm pretty sure Shikamaru said something like that once too, not to mention all of the time I spent with Sasuke and his fangirls in the academy."

Kankuro thought back to what Gaara said about Naruto before and smiled slightly "Naruto, thank you."

Naruto blinked, then grinned "Hey don't look at me, it's granny over there you should be thanking." he looked over to where Sasuke was holding Chiyo "She saved Gaara with some kind of incredible medical ninjutsu."

' _So that's it…'_

"She tired herself out and fell asleep, but I'm sure she'll be alright when we get her back to the village."

"No Naruto, she won't."

Naruto blinked "What do you mean?"

"Granny Chiyo used _that_ jutsu."

"What are you talking about? Why won't she-?"

"She wasn't using medical ninjutsu, it was a reanimation ninjutsu. Granny Chiyo is… dead." he got everyone's attention now.

"Wh-What are you saying? How can she be dead?"

"It's a ninjutsu that allows you to bring someone back from the dead in exchange for your own life. Years ago in our Puppet Master Corps, a jutsu was secretly developed to breathe life into actual puppets. Granny Chiyo led that project. They did come up with a method for it. However, with the way they invented it there was too much risk involved. It was classified as a forbidden jutsu before human testing could be done, and it was sealed away."

Naruto stared at Chiyo's body in Sasuke's arms ' _Granny…'_

"Naruto, there really _is_ something different about you." Temari admitted "It's true, you do have the power to change people. Lady Chiyo always used to say that she didn't care about the future of the Hidden Sand Village, she wasn't the kind of person who would do something like this for Gaara."

"Naruto, lady Chiyo entrusted the future to you and Gaara." Tatsu pointed out "It was a death befitting of a shinobi."

"Yeah." Naruto muttered "Just like the old man, the Third Hokage, when you think about it, and the Fourth Hokage and the rest."

"That's true. You've really grown up"

"I think it get it now Tatsu, I finally understand exactly what it is granny wished for."

"I think I do too."

One of the Sand ninja tried to help Gaara once he fell "Lord Gaara, are you alright?"

"I'm fine…" Gaara struggled to stand, but found both Tatsu and Naruto "Thank you." then he addressed everyone around them "Everyone, pray for Lady Chiyo and bid her farewell."

Everyone in the area closed their eyes and prayed, hoping Chiyo would rest in peace in the afterlife.

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In the early hours of the morning, the _real_ Deidara emerged from underground, having swapped himself out with an exploding clone before.

Then he made his way to find his arm, and more importantly, the ring attached to it.

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Zetsu arrived at the Akatsuki hideout with his subordinate Tobi, intent on recovering Sasori's ring.

They did, but Tobi lost it amongst the rubble.

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Baki rushed out of the gates to meet a crowd of waiting civilians and shinobi "How much longer?"

"They'll soon be in sight!" one shinobi called.

Baki waited, and after a few minutes, he could see them approaching. To his relief, he was able to see Gaara with them, with Tatsu and Naruto supporting him "It's Gaara…"

When the rest of the crowd saw, they immediately started cheering.

"Now that's what I call a warm welcome." Tatsu commented "Just what you'd expect from the Kazekage."

The crowd rushed out to meet him, with Baki up at the front "I am happy you're safe."

Gaara nodded "Thanks to these people."

"Yes. Naruto Uzumaki, I thank you."

Naruto looked away "I'm not the one who- I mean- I hardly did anything at all really."

"You did a hell of a lot more than me." Tatsu pointed out "At least you fought them, I got sidetracked by a damn clone."

"Lord Kazekage, your people are waiting to welcome you home." Baki and the rest stepped aside and cleared a path "Come, lead the way."

"No, wait." Gaara stopped them and looked back to the stretcher "Not yet."

"Yes of course. Let us honor the memory of Lady Chiyo, a moment of silence."

Everyone shut their eyes in respect as the stretcher made its way.

Ebizo followed it "Well sis, we made it back home."

Once it was through, Sasuke spoke to Gaara "Once this is over, I have something important to discuss with you and your council."

Gaara nodded "Very well."

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Kankuro was surprised to hear something from the Leaf group "What, you're leaving already? You can stay a little longer, come on."

Temari nodded "Kankuro's right, at least a day or two. You need time to rest."

Naruto shook his head "Believe me I wish we could, but we've gotta report back or grandma Tsunade will throw a fit."

"I see."

"Besides, if the Akatsuki got this far then the Leaf might be at risk too." Tatsu pointed out.

"I understand you want to get back as soon as possible." Baki spoke "Even so, in your conditions."

"Relax, a little bit of rest and Kakashi will be fine."

"By the way, we already dispatched the preliminary report with Takamaru, but there was no mention in it of the fates of the two Akatsuki members."

"I know Sasuke killed one of them, but Kakashi mentioned that he wanted to discuss that with the Hokage in person. Apparently there's something else troubling him. By the way, where is Sasuke anyway?"

"He and Lord Kazekage are discussing a private matter in his office."

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The group, along with Ebizo and the Sand siblings, stood before two graves.

Naruto looked at the first one "Is that…?"

Gaara nodded "Lady Chiyo's resting place."

The others gathered around.

Ebizo stepped forward "She didn't want a headstone on her grave, but despite her wishes I thought it was better to have one. I felt sure that people would want a place to come to remember her.

The other was Sasori's, which read:

 _Sasori_

 _Son_

 _Grandson_

 _Puppet Master_

 _A legend whose legacy will live on forever_

Tatsu looked at it "This is what you were discussing with Gaara, wasn't it?"

Sasuke nodded "Yeah. He may have been an enemy, an Akatsuki, and a rogue ninja, but I got through to him in the end and he regained a little bit of his humanity."

"Your parents would be proud of the man you've become."

"I hope so, I really do."

"Alright, let's go." Kakashi told them.

They started walking away, but Ino noticed Naruto and Sasuke still staring at the graves "Hey Naruto, Sasuke, we've really gotta get going."

"Right." Naruto followed them first.

Sasuke knelt down and placed a single desert rose on each grave ' _Thank you Lady Chiyo, Sasori, you both taught me a lot on this mission.'_ and he followed after them.

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Tobi and Zetsu recovered Deidara's arm, just as Deidara showed up to reclaim it, and Tobi's insensitive remarks led to Deidara strangling Tobi with his legs in what he referred to as death by suffocation.

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"Well, so long." Kankuro told them.

Naruto nodded awkwardly "Yeah…" he shared an awkward glance with Gaara "I guess this is where people are supposed to shake hands and get all choked up, but I've never been really good at that stuff either, so let's just leave it at-"

Gaara cut him off with no words, simply with one hand held out.

Naruto smiled and accepted the hand.

Mission accomplished.

 **A/N:**

 **Just for the sake of being clear, Sai will not be in this story because there's honestly no need for him to be.**

 **For the record, the flashback with Shisui and the whole "DODGE" thing was a TFS reference. Sorry, I felt like I had to get the TFS references out of my system and figured it was better to do it sooner than later.**

 **Tatsu didn't get much action in this arc, but I'm gonna give him a very big role soon so don't worry.**

 **Just to let you guys know, after the Tenchi Bridge arc, I'm gonna continue uploading my Dragon Reaper story.**


	6. Tenchi Bridge, Sasuke's Decision

Kakashi slowly came to, he found himself in a hospital room ' _Oh man.'_

"He's awake." Sasuke noted.

"So, back here again huh?"

Then Tsunade came in with Shizune "Good job Kakashi, well done. The same for you Tatsu."

"I didn't really do anything on the mission." Tatsu admitted "Kakashi, Naruto and Sasuke did all the work."

"You weren't just sitting on the sidelines though, I hear you all fought hard. Well done."

"Lady Tsunade…" Kakashi tried to sit up, but failed.

"Don't push yourself, I examined you earlier and it's going to be some time before you return to duty. It's bedrest for you for at least a week." Tsunade told him.

"Guess I'm not surprised."

"Looks like you need a little more practice before using that Mangekyo Sharingan in battle again." Tatsu noted.

"Looks that way."

"Anyway, you just take it easy for a while." Tsunade told him "The rest of you should rest to, you can file your report later. Let's go Shizune."

"Just a minute." Sasuke followed her "I've got something to discuss with you."

Naruto and Lee shared a look.

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Tsunade led Sasuke out of the hospital, along with Shizune "What is it? Is it regarding…?"

"It is." Sasuke confirmed.

"So have you told Kakashi about it yet?"

"He's been out of it for awhile, so not yet. Naruto, Tatsu and Lee do though. They're the only ones though, I figured my team then consult with you."

"Tell me everything."

10 minutes of explanations later…

"I heard this from Sasori of the Akatsuki." explained Sasuke "He mentioned it was a reward for defeating him. He said to go to Tenchi Bridge in the Hidden Grass at noon, from today that would be 6 days from now. Apparently one of Orochimaru's henchmen is a spy for him and that's where they were supposed to rendezvoused."

"Yes but can you trust your source?"

"They were his last words, I doubt he was lying."

"What if it's all a trap? With Orochimaru as bait and the Akatsuki waiting there in full force for whoever's foolish enough to show up."

"If it's a trap then we fight him."

"Yes but now Kakashi's going to be out of commission for more than a week and with only 6 days until the rendezvoused."

"There's another problem." a masked figure appeared before then.

"Dragon."

"Lady Hokage. Master Jiraiya sent me to deliver this." he handed her a scroll "It's further detail on Orochimaru's usage of his immortality jutsu."

"I see. Thank you."

"I do what I must to protect the Leaf." and he disappeared in a green flash.

"I think I have an idea." Tatsu made himself known.

"I'm not gonna like it am I?" Tsunade guessed.

"Nope."

"Also, how long have you been there?"

"I followed you guys, how'd you not sense me?"

"...What's your plan?"

"You won't like it."

5 minutes later…

"WHAT?!" Tsunade shot an incredulous roar "Do you know how reckless and foolish this sounds?!"

Tatsun wiped the spit from his face "Yes I'm aware, and I also know it's our only shot at taking down Orochimaru. Permanently."

"If this doesn't work then not only will we lose one of our most valuable ninja, we'll be handing over the Sharingan to Orochimaru on a silver platter."

"But like I said, it may be our one and only shot to take him down for good. You know better than anyone how true that is."

"This is ridiculously foolish."

"Exactly, it's so colossally foolish that it will work."

Tsunade recalled Jiraiya mentioning something along those lines when he told her about taking Naruto out of the village to train for 3 years "You really believe this will work?"

"I stake my life on it."

"You know what will happen if this mission fails."

"I'll do it." Sasuke cut in "Tatsu's right, this might be our only shot at taking him out once and for all."

Tsunade's eyes hardened "Very well. But don't forget Tatsu, if this goes south then I'm holding you accountable."

Tatsu nodded "Understood."

"Good. Now who do you propose should be sent on this mission?"

"Naruto and Sasuke for one, but we'll need the full 4 just to make sure nobody gets suspicious."

"Yamato to suppress the Kyuubi's chakra."

"Right. Now as for the last one… who's available?"

"Well nobody from Kurenai's squad or Asuma's squad."

"I'm on it!" Naruto suddenly jumped down.

"...How long has he been up there?"

"Since I got here."

"So he knows the whole situation?"

"Considering what just happened… what do you think?"

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Naruto was wandering around the village randomly "Well so much for finding a teammate that easily, and after I made such a badass exit too. Only question is, who'd be good now? If this plan is gonna work then we're gonna need someone who's strong but not too strong, so both Tatsu and Bushy Brow are out. I can't pick someone so weak that they'd slow the team down either, that way the plan will never work. Then there's the question of whether or not we get along with them or we can kiss our teamwork goodbye. I've gotta be careful about this."

"Long time no see Naruto." said a voice.

Naruto turned around to see a hooded figure standing behind him "Who the hell are you?"

"It's me."

"...I don't know any creepy hooded guys."

"Then what about this?" the figure held out his hand.

"Oh yeah! Shino right?"

"It finally came to you? It took you long enough."

"Well how the hell am I supposed to recognize you when you've got your face covered up like that?!"

That was when Kiba dropped in "What's up? You're early Shino." then he saw Naruto.

"No way… Kiba, that you?"

"Hey." then Kiba sniffed him "No mistaking that scent, it's Naruto alright."

"You had to smell me first? What's that all about?" then he saw the big Akamaru "Holy crap, is that Akamaru?"

"What do you mean? Yeah of course it's Akamaru who else?"

"...Wha?!"

"Man look at you Naruto, you've really grown haven't you?"

"Compared to Akamaru I practically stayed the same. It's only been 2 years, there's no way he could've gotten so much bigger."

"Really? We're always together so I guess I didn't notice it that much."

"Dude, he's bigger than you now. It wasn't that long ago he was so small you could carry him around on top of your head. Come on Shino, you of all people remember don't you?"

Shino, however, was in one of his moods "You recognized Kiba right away, didn't you Naruto?"

' _Son of a bitch, now he's mad at me.'_

Kiba waved him off "Don't worry, he's always like that. So what's the deal, when'd you get back?"

"About 2 weeks ago, got sent out on a mission to the Sand with Sasuke, Kakashi-sensei, Tatsu, Bushy Brow, Ino and Neji."

"Cool. So you must've gotten a hell of a lot stronger."

"Looks like you're no pushover either."

"I hope not, I've been training under Tatsu and Lee the past 2 years. They even put in a good word with Asuma-sensei for me and got me these." he pulled out two claws from his bag.

"I learned a bunch of fire, wind and water jutsu."

"I can add lightning and wind chakra to my Fang Over Fang."

"My Rasengan is bigger than your-" he paused when he heard a gasp.

Hinata had seen him and was now hiding around a corner ' _N-Naruto… I'd heard that he'd returned to the village… what should I do? I'm not ready for this… after all this time… I-I wouldn't even know what to say…'_

"Hey Hinata." Naruto was suddenly "I figured that was you, what's up?"

Terrified, Hinata turned to face him ' _Naruto…'_

"What's the deal? What are you hiding back here for anyway?"

5 seconds later, Hinata promptly fainted.

"Crap."

"What?" then Kiba saw "Oh for f*ck's sake, why's she always like this whenever you show up?"

"Well that rules her out then. Anyway Kiba, I'm looking for another teammate for a mission to the Hidden Grass since Grandma Tsunade won't let me go without a full 4-man squad." Naruto picked up Hinata one one side.

"I'm afraid you caught us at a bad time Naruto, the three of us just got assigned a new mission ourselves." Kiba picked Hinata up from the other side and they led her over to a tree "As soon as Kurenai-sensei gets here, we're on our way. Sorry."

"Well that sucks. Thanks anyway, later guys." and he left.

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After that, Naruto was still searching while simultaneously moping "I can't believe it, all that crap and I'm still not getting anywhere. Well if that's how they're gonna play it then I know one person that won't let me down."

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He found that one person that was rarely ever doing anything.

Shikamaru shook his head "Sorry but like I already said, I've been put in charge of the Chunin exams. It's a big-ass drag, but there it is. I mean I'd like to lend you a hand Naruto, for old times sake and all that crap, but these days it seems like my time isn't my own anymore."

Naruto groaned and slammed his head into a wall "Son of a-"

"Besides, the Fifth Hokage herself appointed me. She'd kill me if I just gave it up and went with you. You don't wanna get on her bad side, she's worse than my mother."

"And here I thought I know one guy I could count on out of everybody else-"

"Puppy-dog eyes don't work on me, I said I couldn't."

"I'll help you out." a new voice cut in "Here you go Shikamaru, your mom asked me to bring you your lunch."

Naruto looked and was startled by whom he saw "No way… Choji?"

"Hey Naruto."

"What're you talking about Choji, how could you help him out?" asked Shikamaru "Have you forgotten the mission you're going on with Asuma?"

"Yeah but he needs help, I can't turn down an old friend like Naruto. Don't worry man, I'll clear it with Asuma-sensei."

Naruto grinned "Thanks Choji, I really owe you."

"Sure thing man." Choji pulled out a bag of chips.

"Same old Choji, always eating just like the old days. Compared to back then you've gotten so fa-"

" **Water Style: Raging Wave!"** a blast of water shot towards them.

"Get back!" Naruto got in front of them and formed hand seals " **Wind Style: Great Breach!"** he fired out a blast of wind "What the hell?"

" **Water Style: Liquid Manipulation: Lion!"** lions made of water charged.

" **Partial Expansion Jutsu!"** Choji squashed each of them with one hand.

"Over there." Shikamaru looked to where two masked figures standing on a rooftop at the end of the road "A sneak attack."

"I've got this. Shikamaru, back me up." Naruto charged in and formed hand seals " **Fire Style: Foxfire!"** he breathed out a large fire fox.

" **Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!"** one of the figures shot out a large water dragon, and the attacks collided, cancelling each other out.

Naruto clashed with one of them, kunai against kunai "Who the hell are you two?!"

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Tatsu met Tsunade on the roof of the Hokage building "So Shizune's still doubtful of the plan?"

"Any sane person would be." Tsunade pointed out "Let me ask one more time, do you really think this plan will work?"

"I'm not gonna say it again, Sasuke has to be the one to execute this plan because his Sharingan makes him the only one who can, and Naruto has to be there too in order to make it believable. Yamato has to be there in case Kurama decides to be a dick about containing his chakra from within Naruto, and I've narrowed it down to two guys for who will be the fourth member. They're both testing now. Believe me I'm well aware how different this situation is from when we sent them to the Hidden Sand, but think of the alternative. Orochimaru is still as dangerous as ever, if we don't do this then it's only a matter of time before he tries to invade the Leaf again to get Sasuke. We have to do this. Both candidates know the details, and once they'd decided they'll tell Naruto."

"I see. You've thought this through."

"Tsunade."

' _Shit.'_ Tsunade, along with Tatsu, turned to see elder Koharu standing behind them.

"I need to discuss something with you, it's rather important."

"Fine." Tsunade walked towards her, with Tatsu right behind her.

"I asked for Tsunade."

"If this is about the Akatsuki then it involves me, no discussion." Tatsu said firmly "You're not getting rid of me either way."

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"I should've expected as much." the first figure said calmly "You've improved."

"Who the hell are you?!" Naruto snarled.

"Alright, I say it's time." both figures revealed their masks "It's been awhile Naruto."

"Dosu? Zaku?"

"You disappointed?"

"...Tatsu put you guys up to this didn't he?"

"Yep."

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Tsunade found herself seated in front of elders Koharu and Homura, with Tatsu sitting right beside her "So what did you want to talk about? Since both of you advisors are here, I imagine this isn't a social visit."

Homura frowned "Now that you mention it…"

"Shizune recently paid us a visit seeking our advice on something." Koharu told her.

"This is about Naruto isn't it?" Tatsu guessed.

"Correct."

"Figures."

"Henceforth, regarding Naruto, he must not be dispatched on missions that might bring him into contact with the Akatsuki." Homura stated.

"Before Tsunade goes full herculean because you guys blurt out something without thinking of how she'll react, since that's EXACTLY what will happen, let me speak for her. I completely understand your reasoning, you don't want to risk Naruto coming into contact with the Akatsuki so we won't risk him getting captured. We've been hearing about that from Shizune ad nauseum."

"Well then, we feel it best that you find two accomplished shinobi. They are to remain at Naruto's side at all times."

"Lee and I have that covered, and we have Dosu as well."

"Furthermore Tsunade, you should decrease the number of missions you assign Naruto as much as possible, and limit the scope of his responsibilities." Koharu insisted.

Tatsu held up a hand "Let me stop you right there. While I understand your logic, Naruto won't. Don't forget, he's not the sharpest kunai in the set. I suggest that instead of decreasing the number of missions he's sent on, you decrease the difficulty. Nothing higher than a B-rank, he'll be out of danger and he won't complain. And besides, if Shizune the Sellout here had to ask you two to intervene then you should already know what Lady Tsunade will say. Asking him to just sit around and do nothing while the rest of us are out risking our lives to protect him? It's just not happening, end of story."

"Tatsu, Naruto is not just an ordinary child."

"You think I don't know that? I know fully well he's a jinchuuriki, he's basically a powerhouse on a silver platter in the eyes of the Akatsuki. Look, the Hokage and I are both in favor of using the 4-man squad model for his team, but you can't pose any more restrictions on him. As long as Naruto stays in one place the Leaf is in danger, sooner or later the Akatsuki _will_ come for him. In the incident with the Sand, they went straight for Gaara, the _jinchuuriki,_ despite him supposedly being in the safest location in the village. When they do come after Naruto you can bet they'll be just as brutal as they were then, and at the end of the day that would put the Leaf in danger as well. Think of this, if Naruto's constantly on the move then they'll have a tough time figuring out what he's up to and how to get him. Let's not forget, Naruto's more talented than anybody in our generation. He's a fine ninja and a great asset to the Leaf. Besides, when the Akatsuki come for him, do you think he'll just sit by and do nothing?"

"Correct me if I'm wrong but you can't be sure Naruto won't be taken by the Akatsuki, and if they do get control of the Kyuubi then tell me what guarantees you can make that such a horrific tragedy will never come to pass."

"He won't fail, they won't get him. If there's one thing I believe in in this world then it's gotta be him."

"And if your judgement turns out to be mistaken?"

"Then I'll pay for that mistake with my life, no hesitations about it. As a shinobi, as the last of the Leaf's Kamikaze clan, as a jonin of the Leaf, I will do anything and everything in my power to protect this village and everyone in it."

Koharu and Homura shared a look, then turned back to Tatsu "Very well, if you feel that strongly about this then we will not stop you or Tsunade from doing as you see fit. Now then, about Naruto's 4-man squad."

"If you're concerned about the Kyuubi leaking out then don't be. _Sorry about this Kurama, I've gotta play along with these old farts for now._ Lady Tsunade and I have already picked one we feel is more than capable of containing its power. As for the final member, I've already picked someone I feel is more than capable. Someone I trust with my life."

"Is that so?" a new figure entered the room.

Tsunade looked back "Wait, aren't you?"

"It's been a long time, Princess Tsunade."

' _Danzo.'_ Tatsu stepped up "If you're trying to shoehorn one of your roadies from little boyband the Foundation within the ANBU Black Ops then forget it, Yamato is the closest you're getting to that and that's all there is to it. I've worked it out with Lady Hokage and she's agreed on the team that we've both put together. Wait, were you thinking of that guy with the chakra ink, the fake smiles and always talking about how guys have no balls?"

"He's close to Naruto Uzumaki in age, he's stronger than anyone in his generation in the Leaf, and he's extremely talented with a paintbrush."

"My brother was the one who taught that freak, I'm well aware of who he is and I'm telling you that it's not necessary. Look, Yamato is more than capable of taming Naruto should the need arise, so you have nothing to worry about."

"...Very well." deciding not to invoke Tsunade or Tatsu's wrath or do anything foolish, Danzo chose to back off and left the room without another word.

"So anyway, I'm thinking Dosu. That work?"

Tsunade nodded "Very well, he's in between missions just now."

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Tatsu later made his way to Ichiraku "Hey guys."

"Hey Tatsu." Ayame waved "The usual?"

"More like whatever relieves stress, I need it."

"What's up?"

"Well aside from Shizune caving in and going to the elders for advice on Naruto…"

Ayame gave a knowing glance, while Teuchi paused, then went about his work "It's Danzo isn't it?"

"Yeah. He tried to shoehorn one of his lackeys into Naruto's squad, probably to keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn't do anything they don't like. I'm just lucky I got Dosu in on that squad first, or who knows what might've happened."

"Was it that one guy who-"

"The very same." then he heard a crash "And there it is."

"What was that?"

"My best guess would be Tsunade ripping into Shizune the Sellout. Anyway, Yamato is gonna be team leader since I'm not gonna be there."

"I think Yamato will do just fine."

Tatsu looked to see Hayate come in and sit down beside him "Hey sensei."

"I here you guys fought the Akatsuki. Good job. Hi Ayame."

"Hey Hayate, the usual?" asked Ayame.

"Yes please."

"You know about what Danzo tried to do." Tatsu's voice was quiet.

"Yeah."

"You know everything about Danzo, how he's a member of the Hawk Faction, how he's the founder and leader of the Foundation."

"Which he never disbanded despite being ordered to."

"The Third knew this well, but he knew that Danzo had whatever his twisted mind believed was the village's best interests at heart."

"He's sort of an anti-villain."

"Exactly."

"So what's this plan of yours regarding Naruto and Sasuke that I heard about from Lady Hokage?"

"Well…"

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"Hey Sasuke!" Naruto came running up to him "Wait this is the place right? Where we're all supposed to meet up?"

"That's what I was told." then Sasuke turned serious "You know about the plan right?"

"Yeah…"

"Whatever happens, protect Kin for me."

"Will do."

"And be sure to have Zaku tell her."

"Duh."

"Of course that was the plan, it's not like you or Tatsu have the guts to tell her."

Naruto looked to see Dosu emerge "So you're our new teammate for now Dosu?"

"That's what I was told."

"So who's the fourth?"

"That would be me." Yamato stepped out "It's a pleasure to meet you, from now on I'll be taking Kakashi's place while he's recovering in the hospital. Please, call me Yamato."

"Wait…" Naruto stared, then screamed with terrified anime-eyes "You're that creep who keeps watching me from the window!"

Sasuke stared at Yamato incredulously "What the f*ck?"

Yamato chuckled nervously "Sorry, I just wanted to practice the face."

"Sick freak." Naruto grumbled "What's Tatsu doing while we're on this mission anyway?"

"Him, Ino, Lee and Hayate are on another mission." Sasuke told him "Apparently it's a joint mission with the Hidden Waterfall."

"Wait, since when do we have an alliance with the Hidden Waterfall?"

"Since Lee's team went on a mission there after Tsunade became Hokage."

"Anyway, let me give you a rundown on our mission." said Yamato "The four of us will head to Tenchi Bridge, capture the Akatsuki spy who's infiltrated Orochimaru's organization, and bring him back. This is our best chance at getting intelligence on both Orochimaru and the Akatsuki, intelligence we can eventually use for orchestrating Orochimaru's assassination so keep that in mind. As soon as your gear is packed and you're all ready to go, rendezvoused at the main gate in exactly one hour."

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Tatsu was waiting outside the Leaf hospital and looked back to see Yamato behind him "You're late."

Yamato sighed "Sorry, I'm afraid I got a little held up."

"I told you practicing your scary face on Naruto was a bad idea. Anyway let's go, Kakashi and the rest are waiting."

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Tsunade was waiting with Shizune, Jiraiya and Kakashi when she heard footsteps "Well then, sounds like they're finally here."

"Hey Kakashi, can we come in?" Tatsu called.

"Come on in." Kakashi told him.

Tatsu entered, with Yamato right behind him "So you know about the details of the mission."

"Yeah. I know I can't stop it, but… just make sure they don't get hurt."

"I will. Now then, onto why Yamato's here."

"This is about Naruto right?" Yamato guessed.

"Exactly. You already know about the Kyuubi spirit sealed inside Naruto."

"I do."

"First, let me go back to before the Chunin Exams three years ago. I could already sense the Shukaku inside of Gaara and decided to meet with the Kyuubi in person."

"You what?!" Tsunade blurted out.

"Using my clan's training art, meditating into Limbo, we met in a neutral space and I met him face to face. From there, we came to an agreement: as long as Naruto was his jinchuuriki, he would do whatever he could to make sure Naruto wouldn't be killed or captured, mainly out of his own preservation. Survival of the fittest, if you will. But he did give me a warning awhile back, once in awhile his chakra would start to leak out. Thanks to his training with Jiraiya over the past two years Naruto has managed to control up to three tails worth of Kurama's chakra with no side effects. However, he did give me a warning. So long as Naruto's heart holds darkness, he'll never be able to completely bond with Kurama's power, and that darkness will take over once Naruto goes four tails or higher. Kurama's trying everything he can to hold in his power and make sure it doesn't leak out."

"I see, so that's how it is." Jiraiya muttered.

"Yeah. Tell me something Jiraiya, what's the maximum number of tails Naruto's gained while he was training with you?"

Jiraiya sighed and began disrobing "In all my years of living, I've come close to death only twice. The first time, I broke six ribs, both arms and ruptured a handful of internal organs. That was when I was caught doing _research_ at a hot spring and Tsunade beat me like a drum. The second time…" he lifted his shirt "The second was back when Naruto and I were off training together, and the fourth tail appeared."

"Kurama gave me some information on how that works. From what I know, the amount of his chakra that Naruto unleashed against Haku in the Land of Waves and Gaara during Orochimaru's invasion were just the initial forms. Using the amount of chakra from one tail up to three tails awakens the Version 1 form. Using four tails up to seven tails awakens the Version 2 form, with six and seven tails forming an incomplete version Kurama's skeleton. Eight tails awakens a form just short of a full transformation, and from that point only the Fourth Hokage's failsafe would be able to stop it."

"Wait, failsafe?"

"He mentioned that when the Fourth sealed him inside Naruto, he included some of his chakra in the seal so that he'd appear to rebuild it if it ever unravelled so far as the eighth tail."

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Sasuke looked at Kin through a window from a rooftop ' _I just hope she can forgive me for what I'm gonna have to do.'_ and he leapt off.

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Tsunade was making her way back to the Hokage's mansion with Shizune when she saw Sasuke standing in front of her "What is it? You still have some time to meet up with the others don't you?"

Sasuke nodded "Yes, but I needed to have a word with you before I left."

"Well your timing is perfect. I was hoping to talk to you about Naruto."

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5 minutes later in Tsunade's office…

Tsunade sighed "I see, so it's that bad already?"

"Well it's Yamato's fault." Sasuke pointed out "Anyway, I'll be sure to keep Naruto on a shorter leash to make sure that doesn't cause the mission to go south."

"Please do." then she heard a knock "Come in."

Then the dark ruler of the Underworld- I mean, Danzo- entered "Princess Tsunade."

"Well Danzo, what do you want?"

"I'm just curious, were you able to assign a distinguished Black Ops operative to lead _that_ certain unit?"

"Yes, an exemplary shinobi with experience as far back as the Third Hokage's rule."

"Very well, I just hope that he's not too deeply rooted in the pacifism of that pushover Sarutobi, the gutless teachings of the Third who hated all manner of disagreement. Just as the Third Hokage was rooted in the teachings of your grandfather."

Tsunade's eyes hardened.

"Well in any case, I believe. Now I can enjoy my meals in relative peace. If you'd be so kind as to excuse me." and he left.

"Who the hell was that creep?" asked Sasuke once Danzo was gone.

"Someone who long ago competed with the great Sarutobi-sensei for the seat of Hokage, they were polar opposites." explained Tsunade "He's the founder of a hardline martial faction founded on rigid principles, he also Yamato's superior at one time. As a student of the moderate Third Hokage and granddaughter of the First, he actively despises me."

"Doesn't sound like you're too fond of him either, and if that's how he is then I doubt he's a fan of me for claiming the same power as the Second, your great uncle."

"That's about right. By the way, isn't it almost time for you to…"

"Looks that way." he formed a hand seal.

"You know your mission, and be careful."

"Right, and when Kin finds out about this please don't tell her that I'm doing this for her, only to become stronger. I'm mainly doing this to protect her, if she learns this then she'll probably do something reckless." and he disappeared in a puff of smoke, a small spark at the center.

' _His use of the Thunder Clones has improved.'_

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Naruto stared at the photo of Team 7, from which Sakura had been long since cut out ' _Sasuke… I have to be honest, part of me wants this plan to fail…'_ then his usual personality returned "Okay then, let's move." and he left.

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Yamato and Dosu were waiting when they saw Naruto and Sasuke approaching "Good, you're both here."

"I just had some last minute details to sort out." Sasuke told him "We're both ready."

"Right." Yamato turned to face the open road "Okay people, this is it. Team Yamato, we're moving out."

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After about a day's worth of travel, the group had stopped at a hot spring for the night.

Yamato let out a sigh "Naked like this, no secrets from each other, there's nothing like it for bringing people together is there?"

"Huh?" Naruto turned to see Yamato shooting him the scary look.

"There's nothing like it is there?" his voice was deeper.

"Right, there's nothing like it! _Draconian method it is!'_

Dosu and Sasuke shared a look and sighed.

This was gonna go on for awhile.

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Later, Yamato was going through some of his old ANBU stuff, including his mask ' _I guess a great change in the wind has already passed.'_

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Naruto met with Sasuke in Limbo "Hey."

"You know what the mission is, right?" asked Sasuke.

"Yeah. When we reach Tenchi Bridge, one of us will disguise himself as Sasori and meet with the spy, then you'll come out, _kill_ the fake Sasori, and have the spy take you to Orochimaru."

"And I'll swear loyalty to him, in exchange for him leaving the village, and more importantly Kin, alone."

"Right…"

"You still hate the plan don't you?"

"Of course I do, it's basically ripping our team apart."

"We're doing this for the sake of the village, if we don't then chances are Orochimaru will just invade again."

"I know, but…"

"Look, whatever feelings you have you can get out during the plan." then Dosu appeared "So this is what Limbo is like. Anyway, Yamato wanted me to tell you two that dinner's ready."

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Naruto was practically drooling when he saw the food "Alright! I've never seen something like this! Hey Captain Yamato?"

"What is it Naruto?" asked Yamato.

"What's the deal here? Is all of this really for us?"

"Yep, go right ahead and dig in."

"Alright!" Naruto started drooling again "I don't know where to start! Man if we get treated to a feast like this on every mission then I say you can lead our squad forever Captain Yamato! Let's hope Kakashi-sensei doesn't get out of the hospital too soon!"

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Kakashi was going through hell in the hospital, being forced to stick to an IV despite longing for some real food.

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"Man, I'm stuffed!" Naruto rubbed his full stomach "Thanks for the food."

Yamato grinned "Now then, normally I'd say this was the perfect time to discuss our mission now that we're all fed and rested."

Naruto and Sasuke both bolted up.

"But since the reason we're here is to build up some morale before the moment comes, we'll save the heavy stuff for later."

"Now you're talking, good idea."

"Alright then, we'll discuss the mission specifics tomorrow."

"So we're staying here another day?"

"Let's not get carried away, I'm not made of money you know."'

Dosu raised an eyebrow "You mean you paid for this out of your own pocket?"

"That's right."

Naruto grinned "Alright, that's so cool! Okay it's settled, Captain Yamato is now the official leader of Team Kakashi!"

"Team Kakashi isn't a thing." Sasuke pointed out.

"Whatever, he's the new Kakashi either way."

"That I second."

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As his group camped out, Tatsu stared up at the moonlit sky ' _Sasuke… even if this mission fails and you can't kill Orochimaru, I just want you to make it back alive… brother…'_

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After a few more days of travel, their destination was upon them.

Yamato stopped them "It's right up ahead, let's make sure we're all ready and then we'll head for the bridge."

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After an hour, Sasuke's hawk and Thunder Clone disappeared and he turned to Yamato "No sign of any other presence around Tenchi Bridge yet, so that rules out any sign of an Akatsuki ambush."

"Then that means we'll proceed according to the plan." Yamato pulled out a picture "Could you take this picture and hold it up in front of me?"

"Sure." Sasuke held it up: a picture of Sasori.

Yamato formed hand seals " **Wood Style Transformation!"** he was engulfed in wood and a cloud of smoke, and when the smoke subsided, he appeared as an identical copy of Sasori while in his Hiruko puppet "Well? Did it turn out okay?"

"Perfect, you look exactly like how Sasori did in his Hiruko puppet."

"Excellent. Now I have to match the voice, let me know when it sounds close to Sasori."

"Deep and raspy."

"Like this?" he tried a voice.

"Raspier."

"This?"

"Not that much?"

"This?"

"There we go."

"Alright, if you're all ready then should we begin the operation?"

"Hold it, Sasori sounded more aggressive?"

"Oh you're right, I'm supposed to be cranky and irritable, but more than anything I hate to be kept waiting."

"He also didn't talk so fast."

"We're starting the operation. NOW!"

Naruto grinned "You nailed it, that's exactly what he sounds like!"

"Listen up, our opponents will be on the alert so I want us to split up. We'll have to work as a team, especially you Naruto. No one makes a move before I give the signal."

"Right."

"Good. Let's go!" and they scattered, with Naruto, Dosu and Sasuke hiding amongst the bushes, while Yamato himself stood on the path to the bridge, still disguised as Sasori's puppet ' _Okay, this is it.'_ he made his way forward onto the bridge ' _He's here.'_

A cloaked figure appeared on the other side of the bridge and met Yamato, at the center of the bridge "It's been a long time Lord Sasori." the figure shifted his hood, revealing his face.

Yamato-Sasori nearly froze in shock ' _That's…!'_

"About five years, right?"

' _Kabuto… Yakushi!_ Were you followed?"

Kabuto looked back, then back to _Sasori_ "It's just you and me."

"How do you feel?"

"Well I still haven't shaken that strange sensation, from when your jutsu broke I remembered who I was again. My head still feels clouded and heavy."

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"No way, he's back?" Naruto murmured in shock "So the Akatsuki spy was actually Kabuto?"

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"I have a few questions for you." _Sasori_ rasped.

Kabuto nodded "I don't have much time, so please keep it brief. I risked my life sneaking out to see you without Orochimaru finding out."

"I want information about your boss's recent activity, as well as the location of his hideout."

"Orochimaru has several hideouts, we keep moving to a different one every week to avoid being discovered by the enemy. Of course many are in the Hidden Sound Village, but some hideouts are in other lands too. He as spies everywhere, acting as his eyes and ears. There are so many ways a person can get around, it's not easy to track them."

"The current hideout?"

"Right now Orochimaru's holed up on a small island on a lake just to the north of here, we'll be moving again in three days. He hasn't been up to anything noteworthy as of recent, apparently he's planning to bide his time and wait until he can assault the Leaf Village and transfer himself into Sasuke Uchiha's body. Oh, by the way…" he suddenly whipped around and looked towards a bush, only for it to be a rabbit "It was nothing, just a wild rabbit." it wasn't, but he wasn't going to mention that "As I was saying, we should discuss the orders you gave me Lord Sasori."

' _Dammit, I still had a few more things I wanted to ask him while I had the chance. If this conversation goes on much longer then I might be discovered.'_

"Even after reanimation, Orochimaru uses a protection jutsu on the specimens of his discarded vessel so I wasn't able to analyze their cellular structure as you commanded me."

"I see."

Kabuto's eyes narrowed slightly "Now I trust you brought the item you promised me. Let's do the hand off, I've spent too much time here as it is." he held out his hand "If I were to be discovered speaking with you like this then Orochimaru would certainly kill me."

"I'm aware. _I can't stall any longer, I have to take him right now!'_ he drew a kunai and was about to charge.

That is, before _he_ appeared "Your conversation sounds intriguing, I hope neither of you would mind if I joined in the fun."

' _He was followed!_ Orochimaru…"

Kabuto quickly ditched his cloak to avoid Orochimaru's snakes, and retreated back to _Sasori's_ side "Lord Sasori if you hadn't pulled out that kunai then I never would've gotten away from him in time."

' _Lucky, looks like he was so disturbed, I guess my cover hasn't been blown yet. However, now that Orochimaru has shown up… what'll I do?'_

Orochimaru de-summoned his snake and smirked "I remember that garb, it sure brings back memories Sasori."

"So you followed Kabuto did you?"

"Oh I just wanted to thank you in person, after all you're the one who sent this kid to me and he's come in _very_ handy. The development of any new jutsu usually eats up well over 100 human test subjects, but thanks to your spy's medical ninjutsu skills I've been able to reuse my test subjects again and again. For some reason it's always so hard to find volunteers."

' _Taking on Orochimaru by myself would be virtually impossible, and even if I work alongside Kabuto to beat him Kabuto would tell by my fighting style that I'm not really Sasori. I could summon my three teammates, but my identity would be revealed and Kabuto would flee before we capture him. Either I call on the others and try to defeat both these guys, or mainstream my cover and retreat right now. Okay, time to decide.'_

"Now then…" Kabuto activated his Chakra Scalpel and slashed at _Sasori_ with it.

Sasori was shredded, but Yamato got out with a scratch on his arm ' _Did he know who I was? No, he couldn't have. Then what's going on here?!'_

" **Multiple Striking Shadow Snakes!"** Orochimaru unleashed multiple snakes from his arm and trapped Yamato with them.

Yamato substituted right before being bitten by one of the snakes, and landed on the bridge.

Orochimaru retracted his snakes "That was a Wood Style Substitution. Interesting, you must be…"

"Lord Orochimaru, is that form Sasori's real body?" asked Kabuto.

"Sasori? Definitely not. Oh come on Kabuto, you mean all this time as his faithful servant and you've yet to see the man's real face?"

"Well he always hides it behind those weird puppets of his, the man is such a dreary fellow."

"What is the meaning of all this?" Yamato demanded "Kabuto you were supposed to be an Akatsuki spy, shouldn't you have been controlled by Sasori's jutsu this whole time?"

"Not any longer, Lord Orochimaru broke that jutsu long ago."

"So you pretended to be under Sasori's jutsu all the while having turned traitor, or did Orochimaru use his powers to turn you?"

"Oh no you've got it wrong, the fact of the matter is I empathize with Lord Orochimaru's ideals. Who are you anyway? The plan was to come take care of Sasori, but your presence changes things."

"Kabuto, I can fill you in about this child later on." Orochimaru turned to Yamato "For now, why don't you signal to the three baby rats behind you to come on out?"

' _So he must've known all along.'_ with no other options to go to in this situation, Yamato gave the signal.

Naruto, Dosu and Sasuke all emerged "You…"

Orochimaru looked at Dosu "A face I know all too well. A pleasure to see you again Dosu, I see you're looking well." then at Naruto "And it looks like the Kyuubi tagged along." then he looked at Sasuke "Well well if it isn't our dear Sasuke. Tell me, how's that Curse Mark treating you?"

"Shut up." Sasuke stood and slowly walked forward "Orochimaru, I didn't come to fight. I came to offer you a deal."

Orochimaru was actually surprised by this "Oh do tell Sasuke, what is this so-called deal?"

"It's plainly clear you're not going to leave the Leaf alone until you have what you want, so I came to this decision. I will go with you and swear allegiance to you, on one condition. If I join you, you keep your hands off the Leaf and leave the village and its people in peace. Understood?"

Orochimaru blinked, then chuckled "Well now, the hatching has grown some bigger feathers has he?"

' _...Was I supposed to get that?'_

"Very well Sasuke, we have a deal."

"Good."

"Hold it!" Naruto finally appeared in between them, arms stretched out "Sasuke, you know that there's no way in hell I'm letting you do this!"

"Naruto, you know I have to-"

"F*ck whatever you have to do! I'm not letting you go!"

"...Very well, I thought it might come to this." he looked back "Yamato, stay out of this and don't get involved unless the Kyuubi's chakra reaches four tails. Dosu, you know what you have to do while I'm gone." then he turned to Naruto "Well Naruto, I suppose I'll have to deal with you first." he turned and bit his thumb " **Summoning Jutsu!"** he slammed his hand into the ground and summoned his hawk "Hop on."

"Where are we going?"

"We're moving this to somewhere more appropriate, you already know where that would be don't you?"

"Yeah, I've got a good idea." Naruto leapt onto Sasuke's hawk.

"We'll hold off on the fight until we get there. Garuda, let's go." and they took off.

Dosu stared intently ' _Naruto… Sasuke…'_

"Well now, this is an interesting development. I think I'll tag along and see how this plays out. Kabuto, be sure to tie up any loose ends here and join me when you're done." then Orochimaru disappeared into the ground.

"Yamato, stay on your toes. I know from personal experience that Kabuto is one of the last people in the world you'd wanna face."

Yamato got into a stance "Right."

Kabuto merely pushed up his glasses "So I take it Sasori won't be coming after all. It's strange, Sasori was the only person who knew that I would be here today. Not even his fellow Akatsuki were privy to that information, and yet you Leaf ninja are here. I can't imagine Sasori being forced to reveal the secret even under torture, which makes me think he must've told you willingly. I suspect he was hoping that by coming here you would gather enough information about Lord Orochimaru to enable you to take him down once and for all. It seems Orochimaru has turned out to be quite a handful even for the Akatsuki. I must say, your disguise earlier was perfect. You wouldn't have been able to pull that off unless you met Sasori personally, and that's the only occasion I can think of when he told you about our rendezvous. There's no way that Sasori could've been aware that the jutsu placed on me had worn off, so for him to have divulged such sensitive intelligence to you, it means Sasori was acknowledging your power. Sasori bore a grudge against Orochimaru, he always said he would be the one to personally bring Orochimaru down. The fact that Sasori ended up involving all of you in this matter means that you must need to do the job for him. Or to put it another way, he's either been captured or he's no longer alive."

"Unfortunately it's the latter." Dosu told him "Sasuke himself personally defeated Sasori in battle 10 days ago."

"I see, that's wonderful news. Lord Orochimaru should be very pleased to hear that."

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Garuda dropped Naruto and Sasuke off at their destination: the Final Valley.

Naruto stood on the head of the Hashirama statue "It figures you'd bring us here, this place sure brings back memories."

Sasuke stood on the head of Madara "Just like before, I'll be the one to come out on top in the end. We both know that Orochimaru is watching, he'll expect us to fight and you'll try to stop me from going. What do you think of all this?"

"Well technically we never did decide who was the stronger one of us. I've got Kurama, you've got Raijin. It's only fair for us to go at it and decide who's best. But first I have to ask, what do you plan to do if you get to Orochimaru?"

"Tatsu and I worked out all the details. I'm gonna train under Orochimaru, find some potential allies and earn their loyalty, bide my time, and when Orochimaru's at his weakest due to his immortality jutsu, that's when I'll strike. After that I'm going to recruit allies, form a small squad, find Itachi and kill him. If all goes according to plan, I'll return to the village after that and beg Kin for her forgiveness."

"I figured as much. Alright, let's get started."

"Right, but I'm making the first move." Sasuke blitzed behind Naruto and aimed a spin kick at the back of his head.

Naruto ducked under it and threw his own punch.

Sasuke caught it and did several backflips away, landing on the cliffside on the side of Hashirama's statue, Sharingan flaring and then disappearing.

Naruto charged.

Sasuke met the charge and easily outpaced him, eventually blocking a kick "You're slow Naruto, too slow."

"Wanna bet?" Naruto suddenly appeared behind him, a kick already in full swing.

Sasuke felt the kick collide with his head and flew away.

" **Wind Style: Cyclone Cannon!"** Naruto breathed out a blast of wind.

" **Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu!"** Sasuke breathed out a fire dragon, growing bigger as it shot through the wind.

Naruto formed a Shadow Clone " **Wind Style: Crimson Wind!"** he fired several sharp slashes of wind " **Water Style: Raging Waves!"** the clone breathed out a blast of water " **Combination Jutsu: Raging Hurricane!"** the wind and water jutsu combined into what appeared as a miniature typhoon and surged forward, cancelling out the enhanced fire dragon.

Sasuke leapt out of the way of the attack, just barely avoiding being hit, and looked to see several trees being ripped down behind him "Not too shabby." his Sharingan flared into life and he formed several hand seals "Let's try this again."

"So now it's raw power huh?" Naruto formed a Rasengan "Sure, I'm game. Just basics this time though."

"Right. No Kurama chakra, no Raijin chakra, just what we've got on our own."

"Agreed."

Sasuke charged.

Naruto charged, but before making it a quarter of the way there he stepped on a trip wire, and the ground began to crack and glow.

Sasuke leapt off of the cliff.

Naruto just barely made it away just as the ground exploded "So you've been here before."

"On the way back from the Sand I sent a Thunder Clone to set this up in advance."

Naruto caught Sasuke's foot, spun, and threw him down into the water.

Sasuke swam to the surface and stood.

Naruto was behind him again and smashed him into the water with a kick before he leapt away, then landed on the water and formed a Rasengan, waiting for Sasuke to surface.

Then Sasuke exploded out of the water a few feet away, a Chidori already ready.

"Now that's more like it." Naruto charged and shoved his Rasengan forward.

Sasuke's free hand swept it aside and drove the Chidori into Naruto's right shoulder, just missing any fatal areas but still hitting where it would make him pass out "Too slow Naruto." he leapt back away.

Naruto coughed up blood and glared, his eyes turning crimson and his pupils changing. His wounds healed themselves and he straightened up "So that's how you wanna play it? Fine then, let's go. **Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** he created four clones and all 5 charged, creating massive waves as they shot forward across the water.

Sasuke dodged two, kicked the third into the fourth, then felt the real one's foot hit his chest, sending him flying backwards and skidding across the water, before he finally managed to regain his footing and formed hand seals " **Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"** he breathed out a fireball.

Naruto shot forward again and leapt onto the cliff on all fours, kicking up dust behind him.

Sasuke shot out three more fireballs, the last one successfully finding its mark and exploding.

When the smoke cleared, Naruto was nowhere in sight, only to explode from underneath the water behind Sasuke and slammed both fists into his back, driving him underwater.

Sasuke exploded out and landed on the surface a safe distance away from Naruto, his Sharingan evolving into the Sanda Sharingan "Alright I'm impressed, sorry Naruto but you can't win now."

"Wanna bet?" Naruto charged forward again, sending up waves with pure speed along.

This time, Sasuke was able to keep up thanks to the enhancement on his Sharingan, and he dodged and blocked all of Naruto's attacks, before he eventually dropped under a punch and kicked Naruto back up to the top of the cliff. He then followed and fell towards him.

Naruto threw a punch at him.

Sasuke blocked the punch, pushed out of the way, flipped, planted a foot in Naruto's face, then pushed off to roll and land.

Naruto stood and charged while Sasuke's back was turned, then threw a punch.

Sasuke ducked under the punch, then jumped and spun and kicked Naruto off the cliff again.

Naruto suddenly appeared behind Sasuke and smashed into, sending both of them flying off the cliff, and he created a dozen clones. They all left off, the sheer force of it leaving a crater in the face of the cliff, and they charged.

Sasuke began dodging them, each one of them crashing down on him. He blocked a few attacks and met one punch with a kick.

Each one exploded, leaving nothing in the air. Then the water below started glowing, and a pair of hands shot out and grabbed him by the legs.

Sasuke found himself dragged down until his knees were in the water.

A massive chain of clones shot out of the water, dragging Sasuke with them as the chain began swinging in a circle and smashed Sasuke into a cliffside.

' _So they're still there even after that? Doesn't matter, we're basically battling on pure instinct now.'_ as a result of that, Sasuke formed a hand seal " **Lighting Style: Purple Thunder!"** he shot out a blast of purple lighting that spread across the chain, destroying every clone.

The one holding his ankles was burned and wounded, barely able to move "S...Sasuke…"

"It's too late Naruto." Sasuke let out a heavy sigh "This will knock you out." he kicked Naruto out of the newly-formed crater and jumped out after him, then wrapped his arms around Naruto's legs and his own legs around Naruto's torso, and they fell.

Naruto slammed head-first into a massive rock by the water.

Sasuke stared in shock at the blood leaking from Naruto's head ' _Naruto… I was just aiming to send him into the water, nothing like this…'_

Naruto suddenly bolted in front of him and smashed his fist into Sasuke's nose, nearly shattering it and sending Sasuke tumbling back as a crimson cloak of chakra appeared and began covering his body, two ears and two tails sticking out.

' _Two tails right off the bat?'_ then the pain caught up to him ' _Son of a mother f*cker!'_

"That was for trying to fry me…" Naruto shot forward and slashed at Sasuke with his chakra claws, his movements being so fast the cloak couldn't keep up.

Sasuke felt the hand first, then the chakra, both his together dislocating his jaw and sending him flying.

"That was for the Chidori. _This_ is for the fall!" Naruto went ballistic.

Sasuke felt the first punch relocate his jaw, the second break two ribs, the first kick break another three and the landing break a leg.

Naruto then began beating him with everything he had, only to to stop and jump away.

Sasuke was left lying against a crater on the side of the cliff, too many broken bones to count and too weak to move "Okay… I deserved that…" he coughed up some blood "No getting around it I guess… I haven't gotten a chance to use this yet… I'm not all that sure of what'll happen to me if I do… but I don't have any other choice, do I?" a cloak of electricity-coated chakra began enveloping his body, wings made of pure lightning growing out of his back.

"Sasuke…" a third tail formed.

"So you're going up to three tails? You know what will happen if you go any higher, not to mention what it'll do to your body."

"I know, but the way you are now I doubt I'd be able to win without them."

"Fair enough…" a blue Chidori with a black light at the center formed in his hand "One last try, what do you think?"

"Sounds good to me." a crimson Rasengan formed in his palm.

Sasuke charged "NARUTOOOOOOOOO!"

"SASUKEEEEEEEE!" Naruto met the charge, the attacks colliding in the middle, the force preventing it from exploding, at least not at first.

The raw chakra from the collision formed a dark purple sphere around them, turning pitch black as more chakra joined it.

Then the sphere exploded outwards, detonating and engulfing the valley in an explosion.

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Dosu noticed the dark clouds overhead ' _This isn't good._ Yamato."

"I know." said Yamato "This is the exact reason why I was chosen for this mission."

"Same, now let's hurry. For all we know, we might be too late already."

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The attack had subsided, and when it subsided, Naruto was unconscious, his wounds slowly healing themselves but he didn't have enough strength to stay conscious, and he promptly passed out from his wounds and exhaustion.

Sasuke stood over him, then slowly removed his headband and placed it in his bag "We'll call this one a tie."

"Well done Sasuke, very impressive."

Sasuke looked too see Orochimaru standing nearby "Don't forget, if you ever dishonor our deal then I will kill you without hesitation."

"My dear Sasuke, when have I ever been one to go back on my word?" he placed a hand on Sasuke's shoulder, and they both disappeared.

After that, Dosu showed up with Yamato "So they're gone."

Yamato nodded "Yes, it looks like that stage of the mission was a success. Only now…"

"We're left to pick up the pieces."

Sure enough, at that moment, Naruto stood, his skin peeling off, the chakra cloak resurfacing as a fourth tail sprouted.

" **Earth Style: Dark Swamp!"** Dosu formed a hand seal and slammed both hands into the ground, causing "Hurry captain Yamato!"

"Right!" Yamato formed a hand seal and began encasing Naruto with wood style, then formed several more hand seals, a mark appearing on his right hand " **Hokage Style Elder Jutsu: 10th Edict on Enlightenment!"** he rushed forward and placed a hand on Naruto's chest, then he retreated, his hand pulling chakra from Naruto's chest. Then he slammed his free hand on the ground, causing several wood pillars to surround Naruto.

Slowly, Kurama's chakra began to disappear, leaving Naruto in his normal form unconscious, his skin deep red and he appeared to be in excruciating pain from the process.

Yamato fell to one knee, exhausted and low on chakra "It's done…"

"So that's what Tatsu meant." Dosu guessed "He mentioned there was a specific reason you were chosen to lead us this time around."

"A long time ago, Orochimaru was experimenting on people using the First Hokage's cells. I was the only one to survive this."

"I heard the First Hokage had total control over the Tailed Beasts, mainly due to his Wood Style."

"Because I have his DNA within me only I can pacify Naruto with it, but only because he wears the First Hokage's necklace."

"Tatsu mentioned that to me back when we were sent to bring Lady Tsunade back to the village to make her Hokage." Dosu gently picked up Naruto and put him on his bag "Let's go, we have to return to the village and report this to Lady Tsunade."

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Orochimaru let out an ominous chuckle "Sasuke, you are the chosen one."

"Let me ask you something." Sasuke stopped walking "You could've taken out Naruto and the rest at any time, yet you chose to let them live. Why?"

Kabuto pushed up his glasses "There was simply no need to. You see, they and we share a common enemy. The Akatsuki are in the way and we figured that if we let them live then perhaps they can get rid of at least one more Akatsuki for us, which would also make your eventual pursuit of Itachi that much easier."

"Fair enough." Sasuke gripped his fist ' _Just a few months with these creeps, then they're both dead men walking.'_

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At the same time, Akatsuki members Hidan and Kakuzu were confronting Yugito Nii of the Hidden Cloud, jinchuuriki of the Two-Tails.

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About 2 days went by.

Naruto, now heavily bandaged and lying in a hospital bed, staring out at the window ' _Sasuke…'_

"Hey, look who's up."

Naruto turned to see Tatsu standing in the doorway "Tatsu."

"So the mission went well?"

Naruto turned downcast "Exactly as you planned."

"I know you hated this from the start Naruto and I'm sorry, but being a shinobi means we have to make sacrifices. Besides it's not like Sasuke's dead, we can just get him back in a few months."

"Yeah… how'd Kin take it?"

"Well… we had Zaku tell her when you guys got back yesterday. She fainted, and she still hasn't woken up yet."

"I see." then he grinned "Okay, switch to lighter topic. How'd that joint mission with the Hidden Waterfall go?"

"Oh that was uneventful, but on the way back I got sent on another mission with Ino, Lee and Hayate-sensei. Get this, I met another jinchuuriki."

"No way."

"Yeah. His name's Utakata, he's the jinchuuriki of the Six-tails, he's from the Hidden Mist, and he's got an apprentice of his own. Oh, and I almost started a war between the Hidden Leaf and the Hidden Mist."

"Sounds like that weekend after the Chunin Exam." then Naruto turned serious "I've gotta get stronger Tatsu, I can't keep relying on you or Kakashi-sensei or anyone else to bail me out because I couldn't do anything by myself."

Tatsu let out a long, somewhat frustrated sigh "Well I was hoping to keep this under wraps until I perfected it myself, but I guess now I've gotta teach it to you."

"Teach what to me?"

Tatsu looked him dead in the eye "A jutsu that surpasses even the Rasengan."

Naruto's eyes widened "Surpasses the Rasengan? Is that possible?"

"That's right, if this works it could be considered an S-rank jutsu instead of a plain old A-rank like the Rasengan. I spent 2 years training to master this" then he grinned "But first, how about I tell you about my mission to Mount Katsuragi. It started when we were on our way back from the joint mission with the Hidden Waterfall…"

 **A/N:**

 **Just throwing this out there, to all Sai fans, I apologize.**

 **Sasuke used that Raijin Chakra Mode because he didn't have the second level of his Curse Mark, seeing how he never went through that ritual.**

 **Tatsu's mission is gonna be a separate chapter based on a filler arc that I thought was going to be good. Oh, and it's going to have a major impact at the end.**

 **Just a heads up, next arc a semi-major character is going to be killed off and it's gonna have a serious impact on a major character. Hint: it's not Asuma, but if you guys have an idea then let me know who you think it's gonna be.**


	7. Mount Katsuragi, Enter Utakata

On a cliff in the night, a young man by the name of Utakata, a girl by the name of Hotaru, and her servant, an old man by the name of Tonbee, were attacked by a group of ninja.

Tonbee sent word to the Hidden Leaf, and sent Utakata to leave with Hotaru.

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"Lady Tsunade, we just received this." Shizune handed her a paper.

Tsunade nearly froze when she saw it "This can't be." she took out a small vial from her desk and dipped her thumb in it " **Summoning Jutsu!"** she slammed her hand on the ground.

Then a medium-sized blue dragon appeared " **You summoned me Lady Tsunade?"**

"Mizuryu, I need you to deliver a message to Tatsu."

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Tatsu, along with the others, was heading back to the Leaf Village ' _I still don't get how Lee got us a treaty with the Hidden Waterfall. Still though, I wonder how things went for Naruto and Sasuke this time around.'_ then he heard a poof noise and looked ahead "Stop!" he held out an arm to stop the group "Mizuryu, what is it?"

Mizuryu dropped down on a branch in front of him " **Slave driver sent me here, apparently Lady Katsuyu was dealing with something else so she sent me."**

"Must be trouble brewing, the only time Tsunade would try to use Katsuyu would be in case of some kind of emergency. What's going on?"

" **It's about the secret treaty with the Tsuchigumo clan."**

"The what?"

"I've heard of this." Hayate spoke up "Back during the Third Great Ninja War, the leader of the Tsuchigumo clan, En no Gyoja, passed down a jutsu responsible for wiping out an entire village. The Third Hokage demanded that such a dangerous and destructive jutsu be classified as forbidden, and in exchange for that the Hidden Leaf agreed to provide them with aid whenever the Tsuchigumo clan found itself in danger. En no Gyoja passed away a few months ago and the fort on Mount Katsuragi is now occupied by his granddaughter Hotaru and her servant, whoever is attacking the fort is most likely after En no Gyoja's forbidden jutsu. We must prevent them from getting their hands on that jutsu at all costs."

"So what's the plan then? We all head to meet up with this Tsuchigumo clan?"

"No, half of us should go back and report while the other half heads to Mount Katsuragi to find out more about the situation. We're battling against time, so I say Kurenai and I take two others and head back to report back to Lady Tsunade, while Tatsu, you take three others and head for Mount Katsuragi immediately?"

"Me?"

Hayate put a hand on his shoulder and gave a kind smile "You're more than capable of leading a team, just have some faith in yourself."

"Well if you say so…" he looked around "I think for this mission it's best to have a combat specialist, a medic and a tracker. Ino, Lee, Kiba, you guys are with me. Let's move." and he took off.

"Right!" and they all followed him.

Hayate looked on in the direction they'd gone ' _Tatsu… I guess it's almost time for us to pass the torch…'_

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Though he put up as strong a fight as he possible could, Tonbee was soundly defeated by the enemy ninja.

Despite that, he refused to divulge any information to them.

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Tatsu led his group forward "There it is guys, the fort of the Tsuchigumo clan."

"Tatsu!" Kiba stopped him "Look."

Tatsu looked and saw several kunai lying around "Doesn't look like there was a fight. Guys?"

"Fresh footprints in the direction of the fort." Lee told him.

"Kiba?"

"Hold on." Kiba sniffed the ground "I think it's a group of four."

"These kunai are from traps set around the fort, the enemy tripped them but escaped unscathed."

"So there are other traps in the area?" asked Ino.

"Most likely."

"What's the plan?"

"Let's just follow the trail of the traps they already triggered, that way we'll reach the fort without triggering any of the other traps unnecessarily."

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One of the bandits, named Akaboshi, managed to deduce that Hotaru had the information on the jutsu and decided that they should leave, seeing how he Tatsu's group approaching.

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Tatsu stopped the group at a cliff "A dead end." he formed a hand seal " **Earth Style: Rampart of Flowing Soil: Horizontal!"** a slab of rock shot out from the cliffside, stretching until it reached the other side of the ravine.

"Not too shabby." Kiba commented.

"Dosu's better at this stuff than me, but this'll work for now. Let's move." he rushed off, with the rest following.

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Once they reached the fort, they found Tonbee unconscious.

Tatsu knelt down beside him "Hang in there old man. Ino."

"Right." Ino knelt down and checked on him "He's weak but he still has a pulse, he'll be alright." she started healing him.

"We're a step behind them. Kiba, you and Akamaru go check the area and see if there's anyone else around."

Kiba nodded "Right." and he and Akamaru took off, sniffing the ground.

Tatsu noticed Tonbee coming too ' _Good, he's coming around._ Don't worry, we're from the Hidden Leaf and we've been dispatched to help you. You're Lady Hotaru's servant, am I correct?"

"That's right." Tonbee gave a weak nod "I'm Tonbee. Lady Hotaru is on her way to a small village in the mountains that the Tsuchigumo clan uses as a hideaway."

"Guys." then Kiba and Akamaru came back "There's a collapsed opening in the hillside behind the mansion, looks to me like an escape route."

"Yes that's it, that's how she got away."

"We'll follow to make sure she's safe." Tatsu assured him "Lee, Kiba, you guys are with me. Ino, stay back with Akamaru and finish healing the old guy."

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Hotaru was following Utakata through the forest "Utakata, there's something I wanted to ask you."

"What is it?" Utakata didn't look back.

"When we reach the hideaway, will you still continue to teach me jutsu there?"

"Continue? I don't recall teaching you anything."

"Don't recall? What about all the lessons you gave me back at the fort?"

"Whatever you learned, you learned on your own. Besides, after we reach the village you won't need me."

"But there's nobody that's stronger than you in the village, nobody! And I want you to teach me, there's no one else that I'd rather learn from. You saved me the first time we met, don't say you've forgotten. Those people attacked me but you defended me and got injured in the process, so I took you back to the fort. Ever since that moment, I've wanted to be just like you."

"But I didn't actually save you that time."

"You did!"

"The ninja who attacked were coming after me not you, I merely fought them in order to protect myself. I wasn't trying to save you."

"Even so, after watching you handle them I knew that I wanted to be strong like you. No, I _must_ be strong. I simply have to be, that's why I wish to learn your amazing jutsu."

"Being strong is all that matters to you?"

"What do you mean?"

"I fear you may end up regretting that I was your teacher, you really don't want to get mixed up with someone who's a wanted man."

"I don't care about your past, I trust you. No matter what happens, I will always consider you to be my master."

Having been triggered from hearing that word, Utakata promptly lashed out at her "I'm not your master, don't call me that!" then he sensed someone else "Damn."

" **Fire Style: Crimson Dragon!"** a red fire dragon shot through the trees, and Tatsu appeared and charged him.

Utakata promptly dodged it and blocked the Dragon Blade using his bubble pipe.

Tatsu kicked Utakata in the gut.

Utakata winced, but took the chance to chop Tatsu on the neck.

Tatsu disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

' _A Shadow Clone. How annoying.'_

More Shadow Clones appeared and charged.

" **Water Style: Drowning Bubble Jutsu."** Utakata unleashed some bubbles from his pipe, trapping each of the clones and drowning them, causing them to disperse.

" **Wind Style: Skybound Wind Barrage!"** the real Tatsu appeared and fired several sharp slashes of wind, cancelling out the bubbles "Alright pretty boy, you're coming with me."

"No!" Hotaru cried out suddenly "He's not your enemy, he's protecting me!"

"Tatsu!" Lee showed up, with Kiba on his trail "Kiba say this guy's scent doesn't match up with the scent of the ones who attacked Tonbee."

Tatsu blinked "Oh, sorry guys."

Utakata just nodded and looked away.

"Sorry about that, Tonbee only told us about Hotaru coming this way."

"So Tonbee's still alive and well?" asked Hotaru hopefully.

"Don't worry, he's fine. Our medic is caring for him as we speak."

"I'm so glad."

"From here on out, we're protecting you with Mr Bubbles over here."

"My name is Utakata." he sounded rather irritated by the crude nickname "Anyway, you can take over then. I leave it to you."

"Alright."

"She's all yours, take care." he started walking away.

"Utakata wait!" Hotaru rushed after him and stopped him "Can't you stay for a little longer? At least until we reach the village?"

"Those guys are each very strong, especially the one I fought just now. You can rely on them to guard you now."

"I don't need bodyguards, I need someone to teach me jutsu of my own! Come with me, I beg you!"

Utakata merely summoned a giant bubble, stepped inside it, and started floating away.

"I'll take my training more seriously than ever! I'll endure any and every hardship and I'll never ever cry about it, and I'll never call you my master again. I promise you… and you're not my master!"

"I told you not to call me that." his voice was soft, barely a whisper "Master… I'm not foolish enough to be called that." and with that, he floated out of sight.

"Utakata…"

"I don't know about that guy." Kiba muttered "He smells off to me."

"You think so?" asked Tatsu, his tone unreadable.

"Yeah, that guy's chakra smells foul and it reeks of slug."

"Oh trust me Kiba, it does more than reek. I recognize that type of chakra. Guys… I think we might be dealing with a jinchuuriki."

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The four bandits, Akaboshi, Benten, Chushin and Nango, all met with their leader at their hideout.

The leader told the four of them about how the secret jutsu of En no Gyoja unleashed its true potential back during the Third Great Ninja War and how if they acquired it, then they could all become the rulers of various lands.

However, he also advised them not to engage the team from the Leaf that had been sent to provide them with assistance, claiming that once they reached the Tsuchigumo village, they would depart and that would be their chance to swoop in and take the jutsu for themselves.

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Hotaru was walking through the woods, not keen on the being followed ' _What part of leave me alone don't these guys get?'_ she picked up a rock and promptly threw it into a tree behind her.

Tatsu threw a dazed Kiba onto the ground and stormed up to Hotaru "What the hell was that for?"

"That's what I wanna ask you! Just why are you guys following me?"

"What the hell do you mean why? We're here because we were assigned to be your bodyguards."

"How many times do I need to say it? I don't need any bodyguard, I'm capable of protecting myself just fine so all of you Hidden Leaf ninja can leave now."

"Nice try, that's not how it works. No matter how much we might want to, we can't just say "Oh okay, bye." and leave like that, or else we'd already be out of here."

"Why not? Really, please, I don't want you bothering me anymore."

"It's not bothering, it's called guarding. Look, if you're gonna be this difficult about it then let's see you get out of the forest." and he leapt back into the trees and formed a Shadow Clone, his voice low enough so she couldn't hear "You know what to do."

"Right. **Water Style: Liquid Manipulation: Leech."**

' _I've gotta thank Dosu for teaching me this jutsu.'_

"Finally, they're gone." Hotaru kept walking, but froze when she felt something land on her and slowly turned to find a leech on her shoulder.

The leech hissed at her.

Hotaru screamed and started running around frantically "Get it off me get it off me, GET IT OFF ME!"

Tatsu appeared and threw the leech off her "There it's gone, you're welcome."

"That… That was horrible, what was that?"

"A river leech, they migrate up here around this time of year. There's a whole ton of them around here, so many in fact that they just come raining down on you all the time."

"R-Raining down?"

"Yep. Well see ya, have fun and be careful out here all by yourself-"

"Wait!" she grabbed his arm.

"Oh so _now_ you want me here."

"Please Tatsu, stay with me. I could never touch anything as gross as that, I can't! It's simply impossible, if it's going to rain leeches then can you please stay and block them Tatsu?"

"But I thought you said you didn't need a bodyguard."

"Just until we get out of this forest."

"I don't know, to be honest it's really a tough call."

"Please Tatsu, please!"

"Well… alright, if that's what you really want then I guess I could."

"Thank you." Hotaru breathed a sigh of relief and kept walking.

Tatsu followed her, throwing off the water leeches ' _How long until this gets old.'_

"You know, now that I think about it, I guess Utakata would probably still be my bodyguard if all you Hidden Leaf guys hadn't shown up and taken over for him."

"Utakata… that's the name of that guy with the water style bubbly jutsu in the blue kimono right?"

"That's him. He's the man that I consider my master. I hope I can become as strong as he is, at least someday."

"Your master huh? Well I can't say I know the guy very well, but he kind of seems like a prick to me."

"Well what do you consider to be a good master?"

"Well this might come off as a little fanboyish and sound like I'm worshipping the guy, but this is honestly how I feel. If I had to pick one person I know as a good master, it'd have to be my own master, Hayate Gekko."

"You mean the Leaf's master swordsman?"

"That's the one. He's more than just my master, he's the closest thing to a real father figure I have in my life. The guy's been sickly and kind of frail for years, longer than I could ever know, but aside from that he was still a great ninja. He's not dead though, Lady Tsunade just cured him of his sickness. He's always taught me that I have to follow my heart and do what I feel is right, that I should never leave behind any regrets, and that if I cherish something then I should protect it with every ounce of my strength. So when it comes to being a ninja he's really strong, and he's dependable, and above all he's got a really good and kind heart. He might look a little frail, but that just means you can't judge a book by its cover, and I could only dream of becoming someone like him someday."

Hotaru smiled "It sounds to me like you really care about your master Tatsu."

"It's just like I said before, he's the closest thing to a father I've ever had in my life."

"Somehow I must become as strong as Utakata, because if I can then I'll be able to master the jutsu that grandfather left to me, and then perhaps I can even restore the Tsuchigumo clan to greatness."

"For someone so young you really are carrying a lot of responsibility on your shoulders."

"What do you mean young? I'm 15."

"Fair enough, so where do you think Utakata ran off to anyway?"

"I have no idea, and for some reason everytime I call him master he gets very upset with me and seems really defensive about it."

"Sounds to me like he's got a problem with the whole master-student relationship in general."

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Utakata sneezed as he lay against a tree ' _Someone must be talking about me. Oh well, nothing to do about it now._ At last, I'm finally back to my vagabond lifestyle, travelling the world at my own pace." he looked at his reflection in his bubbles "She'll be okay, that guy can protect her. _But that chakra… no, it couldn't be… it felt different from anything I've ever felt before, and yet at the same time it feels similar to that… Either way he's strong, I know he's more than capable of protecting her…'_ he shut his eyes, recalling his past from when he'd met Hotaru.

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After protecting her from the enemies after him, he'd been injured, and Tonbee and Hotaru took him back to the fort.

Once his wounds were healed, Utakata made to leave, but Hotaru begged him to take her on as his student and be her master.

Of course, since _master_ is his trigger word, he'd refused. However, Hotaru reminded him that he was getting free food and a room and that he should pay them back by teaching her.

Utakata caved and told her that he'd consider it if she was able to walk on water. She initially failed, but after practicing all night she got it by the time he woke up the next morning.

Now desperate to get her off his back, Utakata showed her the Water Style: Raging Waves jutsu, and told her to master it before she became his student, thinking that she wouldn't be able to due to needing water chakra.

Of course, by the next morning, she'd master it.

After that, he'd gone to Tonbee, only for him to request that Utakata act as Hotaru's bodyguard and protect her.

That's brought up some bad memories, where he was chained and bound with a seal on the ground, and his master had placed his hand on Utakata's stomach.

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With a scream, Utakata woke up and looked around ' _I guess I dozed off there for a bit.'_ then he noticed four figures passing nearby and decided to follow them.

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Those four figures were actually Akaboshi and the rest, known as the Magaki Group, making their way.

"What do you think?" asked Nango "Can we really become lords of our own domains?"

Chushin scoffed "Of course we could, isn't that right Akaboshi?"

"That's right, even if we just sold that jutsu we'd still have enough money to live the rest of our lives in leisure." then he stopped when he felt something.

"What is it? What's wrong?" then they noticed several bubbles appear.

"Be on guard, there's somebody nearby."

"There!" Chushin fired off some kunai at a nearby Utakata, only for him to suddenly pop like a bubble and disperse "Damn, what was that?"

"There!" Nango fired off some kunai, only for that Utakata to pop as well.

"What's going on here?"

"Me, that's what." Utakata chuckled from a branch above them.

"Who the hell are you?"

"Doesn't look to me like he's one of the Hidden Leaf's reinforcements, maybe this guy's after the jutsu." Akaboshi guessed.

Utakata smirked "Since you guys know about the jutsu, that means you must be the band of thieves who infiltrated the fort. Makes me wonder, is that jutsu really so impressive? If so then maybe I do want it for myself."

"I suppose you think we're just going to let you take it?"

"So what do we do about him?" asked Chushin.

"Kill him!" they all charged.

"Is that the best you can do?" Utakata dodged their attacks with ease.

"After him!" Nango found himself stuck with a strange slime on his foot "What is this slime?"

Utakata dodged an attack from Benten and used his bubbles to blind him and send him falling to the ground.

"Spread out, we'll surround him!" Akaboshi and the others split up.

Utakata looked around and his eyes narrowed and hardened ' _This chakra flow, their movements have suddenly become much faster.'_ he forged onwards, leaving a trail of bubbles behind as he advanced ' _Barrier jutsu?'_

"Now!" they all formed hand seals " **Shifu Jinrai!"** they trapped him in a pyramid-shaped barrier.

"That's just great."

"It's over." then the pyramid exploded.

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Tatsu looked in the direction of the explosion ' _I can't tell what's going on over there, but it feels like Utakata's chakra is wavering violently. He's in a fight.'_

"Just how long do you intend to follow me?" Hotaru snapped him out of his thoughts.

' _I'd better not say anything to Hotaru or she might do something stupid. I'll tell Lee and Kiba about it later._ What are you talking about? You asked me to stay with you until you got through the forest."

"Yes I did say that, but…"

' _The thing is, the forest is the only thing between the fort and the hideaway.'_

Then Lee and Kiba dropped down "Hey."

Hotaru groaned "You guys are still here?"

"Looks like we'll complete this mission without incident." Tatsu looked over a cliff "I can see the village from here."

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By sunset, they made it to the village.

Tatsu looked around and found the people hiding and glaring ' _Great, it's the Naruto-glare all over again.'_ his voice was low "Lee, Kiba, stay sharp."

"Right." they muttered.

"Hotaru." a figure came out to meet them.

Hotaru instantly recognized him "Uncle."

"Thank you for bringing her here. I'm the one responsible for the welfare of this village, En no Gyoja instructed me on what to do if Lady Hotaru were to come here. Your job is done, you can leave the rest to us."

Tatsu tried to suppress his uneasiness "Very well, then we'll be on our way."

"Stay a moment if you would, we haven't had a chance to thank you properly."

"Your thoughtfulness is truly appreciated, but our teammate is still back at Mount Katsuragi and I can imagine she's worried at this point. We really should be getting back to her as soon as possible."

"Very well, although that is unfortunate."

"Lee, Kiba, let's go. We don't want to keep Ino waiting any longer than we have to." they started walking away.

"Tatsu." Hotaru's voice stopped him, barely a whisper "I…"

Tatsu put a hand on her shoulder and gave a reassuring smile "You'll be fine."

"Thank you…"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Nightfall came, and the three were on their way back.

Tatsu suddenly stopped "Guys."

"What's wrong?" asked Kiba.

"Lee, Kiba, you guys go on ahead without me."

"Why?" asked Lee.

"Something about that place is bugging me, I can't stop thinking about the looks they were giving her. You guys go fill Ino in on the situation, I'll catch up later." and he rushed back ' _I can't leave her there alone. I've got a bad feeling about this.'_

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The Tsuchigumo Chief put a hand on her shoulder "You must be tired from your long journey Hotaru, please come."

"Sure…" Hotaru was uncomfortable with the looks the villagers were giving her.

"Follow me."

She did so, but was still very uncomfortable, and followed him to a small room "Uncle… should I not have come back?"

"No, don't be silly." he opened the door "You're finally home, just as you should be. Now get some rest."

Hotaru stepped inside "Thank you."

"Of course." he closed the door.

' _Okay, now to-'_

"So we finally meet, granddaughter of En no Gyoja."

Hotaru whipped around "Who are you?"

Four shadowy figures stepped out, revealed to be the Magaki group "I knew you'd count on this village to protect you, keep you safe."

"You must be the ones who attacked the fort!" Hotaru suddenly found that the door wouldn't open "Help! Let me out! Uncle please open the door!" she had no idea her uncle had barred the door.

"Give up, it's useless. Hand over the forbidden jutsu."

"No, never!"

Nango suddenly dissolved into mud and grabbed her from behind through the door "Don't give us any trouble."

"Take it easy." Benten called him off "You really shouldn't handle a lady like that you know."

Chushin snickered "Like you've ever been nice to a lady."

Nango reached into Hotaru's bag and threw a scroll to Akaboshi "Here it is."

Akaboshi caught it "At last, the jutsu is ours." he opened it, only for it to explode.

' _Now!'_ Hotaru took off running through a hole in the wall.

Chushin coughed "Should've guessed it was rigged."

Benten looked around "Where is that brat?"

"Quick, we can't let her get away!" Akaboshi barked.

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Hotaru looked back as she ran ' _I can't believe those thieves have already infiltrated the village, I have to get away from here and fast!'_

Akaboshi and the rest watched from above "Trying to hide in the forest?" and they took off after her.

Hotaru dodged a shuriken and attempted to run.

Chushin appeared in front of her "It looks like we found you young lady."

" **Water Style: Raging Waves!"** Hotaru pushed him back with a blast of water.

She attempted to run, only for Benten to catch her "I can't believe you let a jutsu like that stop you Chushin."

"Shut up!" Chushin barked "She caught me by surprise, that's all!"

"Enough, playtime is over." Akaboshi shut them up "Tell me before I lose my patience, where is the forbidden jutsu." the only response he got was Hotaru drawing a kunai.

Benten sighed "What a pain."

Chushin smirked "I'd start talking if I were you, Benten may look like a girl but when he gets mad he's actually quite scary."

"I won't talk." Hotaru said firmly "That jutsu is my people's last hope, you can't have it."

Benten drew and licked a kunai "This is getting ridiculous, if you don't feel like talking then I guess I'll just have to convince you to change your mind." he held it to her throat.

"Don't kill her yet." Akaboshi warned.

"That just depends on whether or not she's willing to cooperate." he prepared to strike with the kunai, only for something to knock it out of his hand "What?!"

"What is all this racket? Can't a guy get a nap around here?"

Hotaru was relieved when she saw him in the trees "Utakata…"

"He's back?" Akaboshi raised an eyebrow "I can't believe you're still alive, I thought we killed you."

"Sorry to disappoint you." Utakata let out a yawn, then turned serious "Look, it's not like I'm particularly eager to fight the four of you, but she and I have a little unfinished business to take care of."

Akaboshi and the rest growled.

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Tatsu's eyes widened, then hardened at what he heard "What the hell do you mean she's gone? What the hell happened?"

"I'm not entirely sure myself I'm afraid." the Tsuchigumo Chief lied "This house is where I hid Hotaru to try and keep her safe, but I heard a loud noise and when I rushed over to see what happened she was gone."

Tatsu took a moment to calm himself down "Don't worry, I'll help you guys out with the search. But first I need you to tell me where you've already looked."

"Oh… well you see, the thing is we haven't actually started looking for her yet so…"

"You wanna run that by me again? Why the hell wouldn't you guys look for her right away? Judging by the damage anybody could tell something bad happened, she could be severely injured."

"Yes I know, it's just…"

"Don't bother finishing that sentence, what the hell is wrong with you people? She's one of your own, you should be doing everything in your power!"

"Yes, but…"

"You know what? Don't, just don't. Arguing with you grungy mutts isn't gonna help. No offense Kiba."

"None taken." Kiba called from where he and Lee stood behind.

"What're you guys doing here anyway?"

"We were worried about her too, so we rushed back to help you out while I sent a Shadow Clone to fill Ino in on the situation." explained Lee "Looks like we were right."

"Let me try this again." Tatsu glared hard at the chief "When did you last see Hotaru?"

"Just awhile ago, after you three brought her here I showed her directly to her room right there in that house." the chief told him.

"Then not a lot of time as past, I doubt she could've gotten too far." Tatsu looked at the villagers, then picked up the chief by the collar of his shirt "You're lucky Hotaru's concern or I'd pound your bloody and beaten ass into the ground." he let the chief go "Lee, Kiba, let's move. Kiba, see if you can track her scent."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Hotaru was relieved to see Utakata "I knew you'd come, I just knew that you'd come to save me."

Utakata was still trying to act cold and distant "Well that isn't quite the situation, but now that I'm here I guess I'd better do something."

Benten picked up his kunai "What's with this guy? I was completely certain that we'd taken him out with our jutsu back then."

"Why are you scheming?" Chushin strapped his giant shuriken onto his back "You think you can steal our treasure away from us?"

"Not on my watch." Nango melted into the ground using his earth style jutsu.

" **Acid Flower."** Utakata blew out acidic bubbles.

Nango found himself burned by a few of them, but retreated back into the ground.

Utakata took Hotaru into his arms "Oh well, it looks like I missed him." and he leapt off.

"Get him!" Akaboshi and the rest followed "Surround him, he won't get away this time." they all surrounded him

' _Damn, that again.'_ Utakata leapt up to avoid it.

"He's out of range." Chushin noted.

"Bye bye now."

"No you don't!" Akaboshi threw a kunai with a paper bomb, detonating when it neared him.

When the smoke cleared, Utakata and Hotaru were nowhere in sight.

"Quick enough to dodge that kunai."

"Even if he is fast, he couldn't have gotten very far." Chushin noted "So let's go get him!"

"Forget it." their leader suddenly showed up and stopped them.

"We can catch him, you're not just going to let him get away with our treasure are you?"

"Here." he threw something in Akaboshi's direction.

Akaboshi caught it and looked at it, and his eyes shot wide "This is a Bingo Book from the Hidden Mist!"

"And it tells us that we just stumbled upon a very interesting man."

Chushin looked at it "Oh I see, the price on his head is so big he made it into this book huh?"

"No way, that guy's worth 50 million?" Nango muttered.

"I guess we're in luck." Benten noted "That girl's jutsu is worth a fortune and now this? We'll all be rolling in money soon."

"But a bounty this high means a serious downside." Chushin pointed out "He must be a pretty formidable guy."

"Don't get cold feet now Chushin, this is finally our chance to hit it big."

"Cold feet huh? Listen you little-"

"Quiet!" Akaboshi cut them off sharply "I've heard enough out of you. Alright, so what's the plan then?"

The leader smirked and leapt over to them "Now listen up."

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Tatsu frowned as he and Lee followed Kiba ' _This is my fault, I should've returned right away when I felt something off. And with Utakata in that fight, who knows where he is or how or what he's doing right now.'_

"Tatsu." Lee spoke up "Let me ask you something."

"What is it?"

"Our assignment was to protect Hotaru until we reached the village right?"

"Yeah, at least that was supposed to be the situation. But if we can't completely guarantee that she's safe in the village then the mission has no meaning. This mission is based on a treaty that was drawn up by the Third Hokage and En no Gyoja of the Tsuchigumo clan, that means that the clan isn't able to protect her right now. If that's the case, then it's our responsibility to do so. Kiba, go. Scan the entire area if you have to."

"Got it." Kiba formed a certain hand seal " **Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** three clones suddenly poofed into existence "Find her scent, comb the entire area if you have to." and the clones all scattered.

' _Hold on Hotaru, we'll find you. I give you my word.'_

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The sun was rising, with a certain bubble floating over the forest.

Inside it, Hotaru came to and found Utakata in front of her "Utakata… where are we?" she looked down and realized they were in the air "We're up so high…"

Utakata lowered them towards the ground "This looks safe." he formed a hand seal and the bubble disappeared, leaving them by a small waterfall.

"I thought I was done for, you truly are an amazing."

"Don't get the wrong idea, it wasn't really my intention to come and save you."

"Then why did you show up and fight those guys?"

"Well I… it's because I've become very curious about this forbidden jutsu of yours that they want so badly."

"You're lying, I know you are. You're not like that at all."

"Well you never can tell, there isn't a single person in this world that doesn't love money, and some are way worse than others." (Far away, Kakuzu sneezed.)

"Oh stop, don't pretend to be a villain."

Utakata looked away, then let out a sigh "You really have this knack for knocking me off balance, you know that? So what will you do now? Those guys aren't the only ones who want that jutsu, I'm sure others are bound to turn up sooner or later."

"I know, you're right. That's exactly the reason why I have to become stronger, why I must become your student-"

"Not again, I cannot keep having this discussion. Besides, this memento of your grandfather's or whatever it is, why do you feel so driven to protect it?"

"Well first and foremost, it's to honor the wishes of my master. My grandfather. You see, he was the first person to teach me. A master and student must be one in thought, and I want to fulfill my grandfather's dream: to restore the Tsuchigumo clan. That jutsu must never leave my possession."

Utakata thought back to the last memory he had of his own master "Be one in thought… you're deluding yourself." he started walking away.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm under no obligation to stay, so if you want to play master and student then go find someone else."

"I'm not playing, I'm totally serious about this. It's important, I need you to be my master."

"You can't stop me from leaving now."

"I know I can't, but still… My feelings aren't going to change. That's why…" she began removing her top.

"Hey, stop that? Why are you doing this?" he covered his eyes.

"I don't want any secrets between us, I want you to know."

"I- But- That- I don't-"

"To see absolutely everything about me." she turned around.

Utakata's eyes widened considerably at what he saw on her back "Hotaru… you didn't… how could they do that to you?"

Hotaru pulled her shirt back up "No one else knows anything about this. I didn't want to hide it from you, not after everything we've been through." she bowed "Please Utakata, be my-"

"No! Don't you dare say that word, just don't." he looked around and suddenly realized they were surrounded by mist ' _Oh crap.'_

" **Hidden Jutsu: Kirisame."** then it started raining.

"Dammit." Utakata tried to blow some bubbles, but found that they were useless "I knew it, this rain is Kirisame."

"Utakata, there's no escape for you now."

"What's going on?" asked Hotaru.

"We cannot keep the village waiting any longer."

"You certainly are persistent, I'll give you that." Utakata noted "Hotaru, stay back." he pushed her to the ground and dodged several kunai.

" **Water Style: Water Whip!"** a whip made of water chakra suddenly wrapped around Hotaru's waist and pulled her away into the grip of a Hidden Mist ANBU.

"Hotaru!"

"I'll only say it once, stop resisting and come with us. Try anything and this girl dies."

"Do whatever you want with her, that girl means absolutely nothing to me. I couldn't care less what happens to her."

"I see. Well I guess we'll find out." several more water whips wrapped around him "I thought that would work, now will you return to the village with us?"

"No matter how many times you ask, the answer is no!"

"Then we have no choice."

" **Lighting Style: Earth Splash!"** lightning was generated along the water whip, electrocuting Utakata and causing him to cry out in pain.

"Utakata!" Hotaru cried out.

"This isn't personal, I promise you." the ANBU told her "But it's essential that we take him back to our village."

"Must you be so cruel? Stop it, please!"

"Don't worry, this isn't going to kill him. We're just draining him of his strength, that's all."

"Please, he's had enough. What could he have done to deserve to be treated this way?"

"A monstrous crime, he killed his own master and then fled from the village."

"What?"

"We need to restrain him, get started on tying him up."

" **Tunneling Fang!"** a Tunneling Fang sent one of the ANBU flying into a boulder.

Then Tatsu stepped up with Lee and Kiba "You guys have a lot of nerve, holding an innocent woman hostage just as a means to an end."

Hotaru smiled "Tatsu!"

"Sorry if we kept you waiting."

Utakata broke free and leapt up to join them "You came."

"Of course we did. What about you, are you alright?"

"Yes."

"So what are you doing here anyway, are you worried about Hotaru too?"

"Hardly, it was just… coincidence. Besides, these guys didn't come for Hotaru."

"What do you mean? Who are these guys? _They remind me of Haku. Wait, that mask…_ So their real target is-"

"Master!" Hotaru cried out.

The ANBU surrounded her "Why are the Hidden Leaf here?"

Tatsu stepped forward "I'm gonna have to ask you guys to let the girl go in peace."

"That I cannot do."

"Plan B then, take her back by force. I'll take the one in the middle. Lee, Kiba, take the guys on either side of them and we'll attack together."

"But these ANBU…" Lee trailed off.

"We've gotta let it play out, at least for now. _We need to find out exactly what these guys are doing here.'_

The ANBU holding Hotaru formed a hand seal " **Hidden Jutsu: Kirisame."** mist and rain poured down.

" **Wind Style: Skybound Wind!"** Tatsu fired a blast of wind, only for it to dissolve almost immediately "What the hell is with this rain?"

"It's a jutsu that dissolves any chakra it touches." Utakata told him "It's called Kirisame."

' _Dammit, I'm gonna have to back off.'_

" **Water Whip!"** the rain subsided and the water whip launched forward and grabbed Tatsu around his waist.

" **Wind Style: Skybound Wind!"** Tatsu fired several slashes of wind, cutting the Water Whip to pieces and causing it to dissolve, freeing Hotaru.

"Master!" Hotaru rushed forward.

" **Water Whip!"** the ANBU again trapped her and pulled her back, then punched her in the gut and knocked her out "That will keep you quiet for awhile."

"What the hell did you do that for asshole?" Kiba snarled.

"Kiba, Lee, stay back." Tatsu stepped forward "My team is here on a mission, we've been charged with keeping that girl safe. Please return her to us and there won't be any trouble. Judging by your masks, am I correct to assume you're ANBU Black Ops from the Hidden Mist and you're after Utakata here? That means Utakata is listed in your Bingo Book as a rogue ninja. Hotaru has nothing to do with you, please release her."

"How about a deal?" the leader of the ANBU suggested "We'll trade her for him."

"No deal."

"What?"

"Hotaru seems to be very attached to Utakata, if we simply let you guys take him away then I have no doubt that she'll follow you. She'll be in danger and we'll be in trouble, hence why we can't hand him over."

"Then we won't give her up."

"If we're forced to fight then our actions could have serious consequences that could even lead to full scale war, are you willing to risk that?"

"Men of the Hidden Leaf." and with a small shower of rain, another ANBU appeared "I'm the commander of this unit, talk to me. I am Tsurugi, head of the Hidden Mist ANBU Black Ops. It is certainly not our desire to let this impasse escalate into a war between our nations. Perhaps it is still possible to negotiate?"

"It is. I am Tatsu Kamikaze, jonin of the Hidden Leaf, let's discuss this and see if we can come to an agreement."

"Let us meet alone, just the two of us, the leaders of our two teams." his eyes wandered over towards Utakata "And Utakata as well."

"I'll agree to that." he turned to Lee and Kiba "Stay here." and he followed them.

Kiba looked at Lee "So what do you think is gonna happen now?"

Lee shrugged "Knowing Tatsu, he'll probably work something out."

"For the Leaf's sake, he better."

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5 minutes later, further along the river…

"Then we're in agreement." Tsurugi noted "Until you complete your mission with the girl, we will postpone apprehending Utakata."

"I'll be sure to let you know as soon as her mission as guaranteed." Tatsu assured him "But in the meantime, there's something else I want to confirm."

"And what would that be?"

"Utakata is a jinchuuriki isn't he?"

Tsurugi looked at Utakata sitting by the river "Yes, he is."

"Don't worry, I don't plan on trying to capture him."

"Good, but be sure to keep in mind that if you and your group fail to honor the agreement that we've made here today then war between our nations may be inevitable."

"I understand. Also, if you wouldn't mind giving a message to the Mizukage. There is a group of rogue ninja, all clad in black cloaks with red clouds, hunting jinchuuriki. They're known as the Akatsuki. They've already claimed the the One-Tail that lies within Shukaku, and for all we know Utakata might be their next target. Your village's Kisame Hoshigaki is one of them."

"I'm aware, Juzo Biwa was one of them as well before his death."

"I see."

"You guys are too much." Utakata waltzed over to them "I'll be doing exactly as I please."

"The hell you will pretty boy, until our mission is over you're staying with us and you'll be under our supervision. After that, whatever you want to do is between you and the Hidden Mist."

"Very well."

"Btu tell me Utakata, just what did you do that would warrant Hidden Mist ANBU chasing you as far as here?"

"That information is none of your business." Tsurugi cut in.

"So be it, my apologies."

"I wish to speak with him alone now."

"So be it, I'll wait over there." and he walked off.

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Lee looked back to see Tatsu return "How did it go?"

Tatsu shrugged "It went well enough."

"Where are they?"

"They're off having a private discussion right now."

"Is it true? Is Utakata really a rogue ninja?"

"Yeah. And I was right about the other thing too, he really is a jinchuuriki."

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Tsurugi led Utakata to another part of the river "Look, don't cause us trouble. Surrender and come back home."

Utakata scoffed "Why would I do that? Why would I go back just to get killed?"

"The village has changed, our old nickname no longer applies. We're no the Blood Mist Village now. Things even seem peaceful. The balance of power between the Five Great Nations remains extremely tenuous and delicate. The importance of what you possess increases and research into its use has also increased. The village needs that power, so you definitely won't be killed if you return. Trust me."

"I don't think I can trust anyone anymore. You know why, my master tried to kill me, and that thing that's inside me… Without question, I sacrificed myself for the village. I trusted my master and did all that he said, and in return he betrayed me and tried to kill me!"

"No Utakata, you're wrong. Harusame did not try to kill you, you must believe me. It wasn't like that at all. He performed that terrible ritual not to bring you harm, but to separate that thing from you. He was trying to _save_ you."

"You actually think I'm gonna buy that? You're either lying or you've grown senile."

"It's true."

"My master… That man used me and tried to kill me, and that's all there is to it. And then, as a result, he ended up dying. If you ask the villagers then they'll all say I killed him even if I didn't."

"Please Utakata, just come home and then you can see for yourself and know that I'm not lying to you."

"No thanks."

"Then we'll have no choice but to kill you, you know that."

"Do as you please, and I shall do as I please too."

Tsurugi sighed.

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Hotaru was relieved to see Utakata and Tsurugi return "You're alright."

"Let her go." Tsurugi ordered.

"Yes sir." they did so.

Hotaru rushed towards him "Oh master-"

"That's enough!" Utakata exploded, stopping her "I told you already, never call me that again."

Tears brimmed in her eyes.

His voice softened "Do you understand?"

"Men of the Hidden Leaf." Tsurugi addressed the group "As agreed, we will retreat for now. Let us hope that both our missions will be successful. However, we will continue to watch you to make sure you honor our pact."

Tatsu nodded "Understood."

"Farewell. Scatter!" and the Mist ninja all departed.

"Well that was fun. I haven't dealt with something like this since the night I became a full-fledged jonin."

"So what's your plan from here?" asked Lee.

"For now, I think it's best if we avoid Tsuchigumo village. It's pretty obvious the place is no longer secure, Hotaru wouldn't be kept safe there. For now let's return to Mount Katsuragi, there we can plan what our next move is going to be."

"I'd like to go back to." said Hotaru "I want to make sure that Tonbee is okay."

"But the ones who came after your grandfather's forbidden jutsu may also return there, it could be in danger as well. For now we should meet up with Tonbee and Ino, then decide what course of action we should take." he looked at Utakata "And guess what pretty boy, you're coming with us too."

Utakata let out an annoyed grunt "Fine."

"Good, now let's move." they started walking away, with Utakata following close behind, albeit very reluctantly.

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Later, as the group was travelling, Tatsu noticed Hotaru looking down "You alright?"

"I guess." Hotaru let out a sad sigh "It's just, I wonder why he doesn't want me to call him master." she thought back to what the ANBU told her ' _What could possibly have happened between Sir Utakata and his own master?'_

"There's no way we can know what's going on between Utakata and the Hidden Mist. But still, I don't think that's really important right now. I mean, if you've already decided that you want to be his student then it doesn't matter."

"Yes it does, I have to become strong and restore my clan's honor, so I have to learn from him."

"I know exactly how you feel, you want him to teach you everything he knows."

"Well it's not quite like that…"

"It's alright, I get it. I feel something pretty similar about that myself. I don't remember anything at all about my parents, they both died when the Kyuubi attacked my village when I was a baby. After that it was me and my brother, but he died the same night the Uchiha clan was massacred. I was really lost after that, but Hayate-sensei was there for me. I think that's why whenever I was training or spending time with him, I wonder if that's really what it felt like to have a true father figure in your life. I'll admit that I acted like a spoiled brat with him at first, but the thing is that training isn't easy, not by a long shot. You have to think things on your own, and you have to think things through on your own, or else you'll never get anywhere. After all, if Hayate-sensei hadn't been there for me then I doubt I would've ever figured out even the most basic of shinobi skills. Trust me Hotaru, you're not alone in this. The thought that someone is near, that they're watching over you, acting as your guiding hand, that can make you so much stronger than you ever thought possible."

"I think I understand. You know Tatsu, I really do envy you. So just like you say, I'm really going to think of Sir Utakata as my master." she stopped.

"Woah, you look really pale."

"No, I'm… I'm okay, really…" she fell forward.

"I've got you." Tatsu caught her and felt her forehead "Damn, you're really burning up." he looked at a wound on her shoulder "And you're hurt. Is that from the fight with those Hidden Mist ANBU? Lee, Kiba!"

"Let me." Utakata took her and received a nod from her "I need some medicinal herbs. Let me see… the dokudami plan should be abundant nearby a roundward stem, a purple plant with leaves shaped like a heart."

"The purple is underneath the leaves right?"

"Yes that's right."

"Got it." he rushed off.

Lee knelt down beside them "So what's wrong?"

"Hotaru is ill, please leave it to me." Utakata carried her away.

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Tatsu found himself by a river "If that plant grows best in damp areas then the riverbank oughta be the first place to look." he looked and saw some bushes "There, that must be what he's talking about." he rushed down and picked them up, only to see something that infuriated him to almost no end "Are you f*cking kidding me? This is just a chameleon plant, there were tons of these things the whole way over here! You know what, f*ck it." he grabbed a bunch of them and started running where he sensed Utakata's ' _I took way too long…_ Utakata!"

He looked back "You've got them?"

"Yeah-" he paused when he saw the mark on Hotaru's back "What in the hell-? What is that?"

"That's the Tsuchigumo Clan's forbidden jutsu, it was engraved onto her."

"How could they do that?"

"To hell with this forbidden jutsu or whatever it is, to hell with our clans, to hell with our masters, and to hell with all of the selfish people that do atrocious things to those who serve them without a hint of remorse." he put Hotaru's robe back on her "They think of those beneath them as mere vessels, as vessels with no choice."

"Hotaru…"

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By sunset, they were moving again.

Tatsu couldn't stop thinking about Hotaru's mark ' _Come to think of it, the way the villagers were looking at her was pretty similar to how Naruto was treated. Ever since the day I first met him.'_

"You're thinking about Naruto?" asked Kiba quietly.

"Yeah, how did you know?"

"Just a hunch."

"Okay…"

There was a pause, and Kiba spoke again after a moment "You were the only one."

"Hmm? What was that?"

"The only one who's never looked at Naruto with that glare for as long as I've known you. The villagers, they always looked at him like he was the shit on their sandals, even the kids, younger or older than us. Everyone at the academy, the students, the teachers, even me as ashamed as I am, all because of that thing."

"Kurama. His name is Kurama."

"Whatever. The point is that you never did that, you never looked at him like he was a monster or some kind of pariah. You were the only person who saw him for what he really is."

"Come on Kiba, everybody sees Naruto for who he is."

"But he had to earn it, nobody should have to earn acknowledgment like he had to. You're the only one who's always seen Tatsu for a real person with great potential, not some monster or screw up not worth their time."

"You wanna know what I saw when I first met Naruto? What I saw was a kid who had potential great enough to surpass even the First Hokage, the man who captured eight of the nine Tailed Beasts and ended up trading them to the other Great Nations, and a kid who needed a good friend to always be there for him. I wanted to be that friend."

"What did Hayate-sensei think of it?"

"He approved, and even if he didn't I would've anyway, because that's one of the most important things he taught me: to follow my heart and do what I feel is right." then he turned serious ' _But still, this whole thing with Hotaru and that forbidden jutsu, I just can't believe any of it.'_

"Something else wrong?"

"No, just… about this whole forbidden jutsu. It's just unbelievable."

"The fact that the key to it is in Hotaru's back?"

"How'd you know?"

"Don't forget, I can sniff out how strong an enemy is.

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The leader of the Magaki group hid behind a bush on Mount Katsuragi "It's a good thing I took all those extra precautions, looks like I needed them." he formed a hand seal watched Ino caring for an unconscious Tonbee using his Dragon Spying jutsu "Looks like they haven't returned yet."

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Ino looked up and saw Tatsu and the others return "You're back."

"Yeah." he knelt down beside Tonbee "You knew didn't you? You knew the jutsu is in Hotaru's back."

Tonbee slowly and sighed "Friends from the Hidden Leaf Village…"

"Please stop all this." Hotaru pleaded "It was my grandfather who-"

"You served Hotaru's grandfather for years didn't you?" Tatsu cut her off "Why didn't you stop him from doing this?"

"I said stop Tatsu!"

"I'm sorry but I can't, it's because of this damned jutsu that-"

"I told him to do it!" her declaration made the room go deadly silent.

"...What the hell did you just say?"

"I asked for it. I asked to be given the forbidden jutsu!"

Tonbee sighed "Lady Hotaru, please…"

"But why?" asked Utakata "Why would you do such a thing."

"If you all wouldn't mind, I'd like a word with Tonbee in private."

"But why-"

"Just let her have her moment with the old guy." Tatsu walked out of the room.

Hotaru gave a relieved smile "Tonbee, I'm glad you're safe."

Tonbee shook his head "I should be the one saying that to you, Lady Hotaru. All of you from the Leaf Village, Sir Utakata, words can't express how grateful I am for what you've done."

"Don't mention it." Tatsu waved that off "But you should know, the Tsuchigumo village was under the control of the bandits."

"I understand now, that's why you came back."

"Yes, but we have other matters discuss. I want you to finish what you were telling us earlier."

"About the forbidden jutsu?"

"Go one."

"That jutsu, it was part of grandfather's dream…" Hotar murmured.

"En no Gyoja?" asked Utakata.

"Yes. The Tsuchigumo clan was once one of the proudest in all the nations. With our powerful forbidden jutsu, it was said that we could even tip the balance of the Great Ninja War. But at the same time, other clans often targeted ours because we possessed that jutsu, and so one life after another was lost."

"When the great war was over, only a few remained who were capable of wielding the forbidden jutsu." Tonbee took over for her "Also, lord En no Gyoja and some of the village elders had disagreements over what our clan's future should be, and that led to the clan splitting into two fractions, with one group settling in the Tsuchigumo village and the other at Mount Katsuragi. But by then, lord En no Gyoja was already quiet advanced in years, so few people opted to follow him when he left for Mount Katsuragi."

"Grandfather believed that restoring the Tsuchigumo clan's name was the key, our name was the way to make amends and honor those who lost their lives to the forbidden jutsu. So that's why I must carry out the wish of my grandfather and master."

"How foolish." Utakata muttered, catching everyone's attention "That's why you had the forbidden jutsu imbedded inside of you? For your _master,_ for your clan? So senseless."

"Believe what you want, it's the student's duty to carry out the wishes of her master."

Tatsu stared at her "Hotaru…"

"I just don't think you really understand how I feel."

"Lady Hotaru, I think Sir Utakata may be right about this." Tonbee admitted.

"Tonbee?"

"It's clear to me that the Tsuchigumo clan no longer has the strength to keep the forbidden jutsu safe, if it were used for the wrong purposes then Lord En no Gyoja's legacies would be tarnished beyond repair. To prevent its misuse, I believe we have no choice but to destroy the forbidden jutsu while we still can."

"And how exactly do you propose we do that?" asked Tatsu "The forbidden jutsu is still inside Hotaru's body, remember?" then he froze "Hold on a minute, you're not suggesting that we-"

"Don't misunderstand me." he suddenly clutched his stomach, his hand now covered in some blood.

"Mr Tonbee, you shouldn't move around." Ino told him.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine." Tonbee used his blood and summoned a bat, which then transformed into a scroll.

Tatsu picked it up "What is this?"

"A scroll that Lord En no Gyoja entrusted to me long ago. It contains the method for how we may safely remove the forbidden jutsu from Lady Hotaru's body."

"So there's really a way to remove it?" asked Ino.

"The great Lord En no Gyoja would never have embedded it in her body if there hadn't been a way to remove it once it had been implanted. What kind of master would even think of doing such a dreadful thing?"

' _Orochimaru.'_ Tatsu thought dryly.

"Please forgive me, I should've told you this long before now. But once the forbidden jutsu is removed from inside Lady Hotaru, it will no longer have any power. I had also longed to restore our clan's glory, without the forbidden jutsu, I know that dream will fade away. Still, this is how it should be."

"No, it's not." Hotaru protested.

"Please, I'm going to need your help. I can't remove the jutsu from Lady Hotaru by myself."

"There's just one problem." Tatsu pointed out "We can't make that decision alone. We'll have to send a message to Lady Tsunade to get permission, but we still can't leave Hotaru like this."

"Just hold on!" Hotaru cut them off "I haven't decided if I'm going to give up the forbidden jutsu yet!"

"But Lady Hotaru please, if we don't do this then not only the jutsu but your life will be in grave danger." Tonbee pleaded.

"But it's my life to risk!" she felt her hand and found Utakata grabbing her shoulders "Utakata-"

"Enough." Utakata cut her off and slapped her across the face "Just knock it off."

"Sir Utakata…"

"I… I'm sorry…"

"Do you know what you're asking me? Do you? I can't abandon my clan's pride and honor!" and she rushed off.

"Hotaru!" Tatsu tossed Ino the scroll "Don't worry guys, I'll get her." and he ran after her.

"My dear Lady Hotaru…" Tonbee murmured.

"I'll go and convince her." Utakata told him.

"Not so fast, we can't let you just wander off." Lee pointed out.

"She couldn't have gotten too far. I'll be right back. I'd never put Hotaru in any danger."

"Alright then. Ino, you go with him. Kiba, hold tight. I want you to do something else."

"Right." Ino left with Utakata.

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Hotaru was praying at a certain grave "Grandfather…" she began reflecting on times with her grandfather.

"Hey." a voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

Hotaru looked to see some flowers being placed on the grave, then looked to see Tatsu standing next to her "Tatsu…"

"So this is your grandfather's grave, huh? I found those growing nearby."

"Thank you Tatsu, that was very kind of you."

"I've gotta admit, the guy's got a pretty good view. He must be really happy to be up here." he knelt down "But you know something? I think he's really worried about you too."

"Tatsu…"

"He's right Hotaru, we should go back."

Hotaru looked back to see Ino and Utakata standing behind her "Sir Utakata…"

"Well come on, let's go."

"But I haven't decided yet."

"If your wish is truly to restore the glory of your clan then you don't need to rely on something like that to do it. Listen, too much power only gives rise to great suffering. I'm a prime example, right Tatsu?"

"Hang on, why are you dragging me into this?" asked Tatsu.

"I know another way, there's someone who can help." Hotaru told them.

"Really? Who?"

"A man by the name of Shiranami, he's from the Tsuchigumo clan and he can wield the forbidden jutsu."

"Hang on, you know this Shiranami guy?"

"He was once a student of my grandfather."

"A student of En no Gyoja?" Utakata repeated.

"Well more accurately, he was a student of my grandfather's student. It was Shiranami's father, a man by the name of Sir Hato, who was the very first pupil my grandfather taught. I've heard that Sir Hato was a brilliant with exceptional ninjutsu skills, and it was said that his son Shiranami possessed even greater skills than his father. But during the Third Great Ninja War, Sir Hato was unfortunately killed because he was trying to protect the forbidden jutsu. My grandfather sensed that Shiranami was also in danger and had him sent away from the village to keep him safe. Grandfather often said when I was young that if those two men were still here with us today then this village wouldn't have fallen as far as it has."

"If this Shiranami guy can help you then we need to find him, do you have any idea where he might be?" asked Tatsu.

"I'm not sure."

"Look, sooner or later those bandits are gonna come right back here." Utakata pointed out "We simply don't have enough time to look for him, so decide Hotaru."

"Actually we do." Tatsu cut in "At least a fraction of the time, and I can take advantage of that really easily." he looked at Hotaru "You know Hotaru, I know a guy who's in the same situation as the one you're in right now."

"I don't understand." Hotaru muttered.

"I can't go into all the details, but deep down you and him are a lot alike. He's got a secret giving him a lot of trouble too. He used to be a real loner, but now he doesn't have to carry the whole weight of it by himself because he's got friends with him, and by friends I mean me, Ino and the other two idiots. Look Hotaru, you're a strong girl who chose to take this burden on yourself and you've been suffering with it all alone. All this time you've carried your clan's future and your grandfather's dream on your shoulders, and that's why I want to help you and see your dreams come true, so if I can find Shiranami then you'll have another ally by your side and you won't have to bear the weight of this burden by yourself, and you won't have to suffer all alone anymore."

"But Tatsu…"

"Don't worry, just leave it to me. Like I said, I've got a way to track him down so fast your head will spin. Give me 2 days at the most and I'll find this Shiranami no matter what it takes. Oh, and Lee's in charge while I'm gone." and he jumped off the ledge.

The leader, actually Shiranami himself, was watching from the bushes and chuckled ' _What a surprise, never in a million years did I expect my name to come up in this conversation.'_

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By morning, Tsunade and Shizune had received word from Mizuryu about the situation.

In order to prevent the forbidden jutsu from being used by an enemy nation, or worse, Orochimaru or the Akatsuki, Tsunade agreed for the Leaf to give Hotaru refuge while the jutsu was either removed or passed on to Shiranami.

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Tatsu was running through the forest, his mind racing ' _I'll find him in less than 2 days I said, it'll be easy I said, me and my big f*cking mouth. Well no use crying about it now I guess, I've gotta put my idea into action._ **Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** hundreds upon hundreds of clones poofed into life and scattered.

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Lee's jaw dropped "Tatsu's doing what now?"

"If Shiranami does return then that would certainly help." Tonbee admitted.

"But can Tatsu find him in just 2 days?" asked Ino.

"We may not even have that long." Utakata pointed out "If those bandits attack again before Tatsu gets back then it may not even matter if Shiranami returns."

Lee frowned "That's true, so we'd better prepare just in case. We should make preparations to remove the forbidden jutsu."

"Do you understand Hotaru?"

"Yes." her voice was soft.

Lee looked over the scroll "It looks to me like this diremption jutsu uses a special potion to work. Ino, you should take care of that and make sure the potion is properly mixed."

Ino nodded "I understand Lee."

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Later, Utakata was wandering outside and watched Hotaru caring for an unconscious Tonbee, recalled Tonbee's words about removing the jutsu ' _What kind of master would do such a dreadful thing? That's what the old guy said. Well I've got news for you old man, one painfully familiar man comes to mind.'_ then he paused and recalled what Tsurugi said to him before ' _Could it be? Did Tsurugi really speak the truth? If so, then what exactly did Master Harusame try to do to me? I must speak to Tsurugi again.'_

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Tatsu and his Shadow Clones were getting absolutely nowhere searching for Shiranami, and now he was almost out of chakra ' _Son of a bitch, almost completely out of chakra and I've gotten absolutely nowhere.'_

"What's the matter?" an old man came up to him "Why are you sitting there in the middle of the road?"

"A combination of exhaustion and frustration. See there's someone I'm looking for and I've gotten absolutely nowhere in trying to find him."

"I see, who exactly are you looking for?"

"Some guy named Shiranami."

"Shiranami huh? Oh yeah, that man."

Tatsu bolted up "For real? Are you absolutely sure you know him?"

"I do, there's a man by that name who lives in a hut by that waterfall over that mountain. I'm pretty sure he does some kind of ninja training there, or at least that's what he used to do."

"Thanks!" Tatsu took off running.

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Hotaru was pacing worriedly until a thought struck her "No, don't tell me… has Sir Utakata really gone off for good?"

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Utakata was actually just casually floating through the air in his bubble ' _Come on out Tsurugi, you're going to tell me what I wasn't ready to hear before.'_ he looked down and saw that one of the Mist ANBU had spotted him ' _Shouldn't be long now.'_ then he paused ' _What's this? I sense two strange chakra signatures closing in on them. And a third closing in on those other two.'_

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The Mist ANBU appeared before Tsurugi "Utakata is on the move."

Tsurugi smiled slightly "I see. I wonder, is he trying to lure me in? Let's go."

"Yes sir!"

They rushed forward, only to see Hidan appear before them, with Kakuzu standing right behind him "Hey there, how would you guys feel about joining the way of Jashin?"

"What?" they all got into combat stances.

Their screams filled the air.

 **A/N:**

 **I brought Kiba in because I thought it would be nice to give him some character development, hence the little exchange between him and Tatsu regarding Naruto.**

 **I figured that since this filler arc is about the relationship between master and student it'd be perfect to add in before the whole Hidan and Kakuzu thing.**

 **For those of you who don't know who Juzo Biwa is, he's the guy who was paired with Itachi when he first joined the Akatsuki. I'm planning to bring him back during the war.**


	8. End of Fury, Master and Student

Tatsu raced through the woods and stopped when he came across a waterfall, a small shabby looking hut resting on the cliff beside it "That must be it, I finally found you Shiranami. _Just hang on for a little while longer Hotaru, I'll be back with Shiranami as soon as I can.'_ he leapt up to the cliff and raced into the hut, where he found a shadowy figure standing and staring out the window "Excuse me, is your name Shiranami?"

"You fell for it." _Shiranami_ turned and smirked, then exploded into black rope.

Then the Magaki Group appeared " **Mugen Hoyo!"**

Tatsu was engulfed in a barrier, screaming in pain.

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Hotaru rushed through the forest, searching for Utakata ' _How could you leave without a single word? Sir Utakata, I…'_ she paused when she saw the old man who helped Tatsu standing in front of her.

"I take it you are Lady Hotaru, the granddaughter of En no Gyoja?" the old man inquired.

Hotaru took on a taijutsu stance "Who are you?"

"Oh you know my name, it's Shiranami."

"Shiranami?" she exited the stance.

" **Release!"** the old man formed a hand seal and was engulfed in a cloud of smoke, revealing Shiranami in his place "So we finally meet face to face, Lady Hotaru." he turned, revealing the crest of the Tsuchigumo clan on the back of his cloak.

"That's…! The crest you're wearing, it's only given to those trained to use the forbidden jutsu. Are you really Sir Shiranami?"

"You're wise to be suspicious but yes, I am he. I came when I heard Tatsu's story."

"Tatsu's story? Then you really are Sir Shiranami. Where is Tatsu? I must thank him for finding you."

"He's not here, he said he had to go. He asked me to take care of everything and left."

"Oh yes, I see. Him too…"

"Tatsu told me you wanted to restore the clan to its former glory."

"Oh, yes."

"Well if you're truly serious about it then I hope you will listen to what I have to say on the subject." he started walking away.

"Sir Shiranami…" she followed him to a nearby river.

"I'm told Tonbee is alive and well, and that he plans to destroy the forbidden jutsu with a diremption jutsu."

"You know Tonbee too?"

"We trained together for a time, but I must say that I'm very opposed to what Tonbee attempts to do."

"Why?"

"Long ago, Father Unari was ordered by Lord En no Gyoja to guard the forbidden jutsu. My father was a hero who protected the honor of the Tsuchigumo clan, and also the forbidden jutsu. That is, until someone who wanted the jutsu, killed him. My father's death prompted Lord En no Gyoja to move the forbidden jutsu to the fort on Mount Katsuragi and to send me away." his fist tightened "I promised myself that one day, I would return to the village for the sake of the Tsuchigumo clan."

"I didn't realize…"

Shiranami bolted to his feet and turned to face her "Lady, my father died and I was forced to flee from my homeland and all because we are the only two survivors who knew how to wield the forbidden jutsu."

' _He went through the same anguish…'_

"Now I'm back and I've become even stronger, together we can revive the forbidden jutsu and restore our clan." he firmly gripped her shoulders, taking her by surprise "There's no need to destroy it, the restoration of the Tsuchigumo clan is my fervent wish too. Let us fulfill the dreams of my father, and of Lord En no Gyoja."

"But…" Hotaru looked away, unsure.

"On the far side of the mountain is my secret hideaway, will you come?"

"Yes, I'll come."

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Lee's head snapped towards Kiba "You said Lady Hotaru is gone?"

Kiba nodded "I'm sure of it, Akamaru and I searched around the entire fort but there's no sign of her."

"Dammit."

"She was here, I gave her Tatsu's message that he'd found Shiranami." Ino told him.

' _Could it be that she decided to go after Utakata by herself?_ Alright then, we'll stop preparing for the ritual. Our top priority is to find Hotaru."

"Right."

"Kiba, go send out as many clones as you can to search for her. Let's go!"

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Hotaru was writing a note ' _Let's see here…'_

"Is that note for Tonbee?" asked Shiranami.

"Oh yes, I want to let him know that I'm okay and he doesn't have to worry. _Sir Utakata deserves a short note too.'_ she summoned a messenger bird, gave it the message, and sent it on its way "I'm ready now Sir Shiranami."

"You're making this difficult." a symbol appeared on his hand "Now go." the symbol disappeared.

"What… What's wrong?"

"Do you think you can do whatever you want?" his head snapped towards her, his eyes cold as ice.

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Utakata was still flying around in his bubble, his mind drifting ' _I thought I'd come to terms with it, so why am I thinking about my master so much now? Wait, what's that?'_ he looked and noticed Hotaru's messenger bird being chased by Shiranami's symbol "A word controlled by chakra?" his main bubble popped and shrunk to the point where he could sit on it, and he fired several small bubbles to catch the wounded bird and dispel the character, then caught the bird on his arm and lowered himself to the ground "A carrier pigeon." he looked at the note "From Hotaru?"

' _To Utakata, I'm going to work together with Shiranami to restore the Tsuchigumo clan to greatness. Thank you for everything you've done. Goodbye. Your student, Hotaru.'_

' _Hotaru… so she found Shiranami… I suppose that means I'm finally free of her.'_ his thoughts paused for a moment ' _Oh son of a- Damn you heart of gold!'_ and he took off running.

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At the same time, Shiranami was running through the forest, an unconscious Hotaru slung over his shoulder.

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Tatsu found himself on the floor, unable to move ' _Dammit…_ Who are you guys? Do you have Shiranami-"

Chushin cut him off by stomping on his head "What a simpleton, he doesn't even know that Shiranami is our boss."

' _Well I do now.'_

"You see, if we let you go after the girl who has the forbidden jutsu then all of our plans will be ruined." explained Benten.

"Hey just keep your trap shut will you?" Akaboshi warned.

Chushin smirked "No need to worry, this is the boss's special barrier that siphons away the chakra of whoever's trapped inside it. It just isn't possible for anyone to counter it."

"Wanna… bet?" Tatsu struggled to rise to his knees ' _I can't access my Tenseigan chakra or else I might end up going wild, I've only got one option… Genryu spirit Hikari, please lend me your power!'_ his eyes turned deep white, similar to the color of the Byakugan, though it actually had pupils, overloading the barrier and causing it to explode, destroying the cabin and leaving him surrounded by a white chakra, similar to the initial form of a jinchuuriki, only white.

"Man he's strong, really strong." Nango muttered.

"Stay calm, stick to the boss's plan." Akaboshi ordered "Next jutsu." they all formed simultaneous hand seals " **Multi Mugen Hoyo!"** a larger version of the barrier engulfed Tatsu, causing him to fall from the ground "Let's see you free yourself from that!"

"You asked… for it…" Tatsu struggled and stood "Nice try… but to me… this is nothing!"

"Again!" they forced more power on it, causing him to fall to one knee "How could he still move after losing so much chakra?"

"Well you can be impressed later, let's just get this over with." Chushin suggested, only to be hit by several exploding bubbles.

"What the hell?" then Akaboshi was hit too and retreated down towards the river "You're back."

Sure enough, Utakata sat above them by the waterfall "I couldn't help but overhear what you were saying, so Shiranami is actually the one who leads you then is he? Tell me where you took her, where's Hotaru?!" Tailed Beast chakra began surrounding him as he entered his initial jinchuriki form.

"What's with this guy?" Benten wondered.

"Akaboshi, this is really bad." Chushin noted.

Akaboshi nodded "Yeah, you're right. The boss should be in the village by now, it's time for us to get there too." and they left.

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Shiranami threw Hotaru onto the ground at the center of the village "There we go."

After a few minutes, Hotaru came to "Where are we? Wait… this is my clan's hideout."

"So I see you're awake Lady Hotaru."

Her head snapped to the side to see Shiranami standing before her "Shiranami?"

"Everyone come out, Lady Hotaru has come back home."

Hotaru saw the villagers emerge, but noticed something off "Those people… what's wrong with them? What happened to all the villagers?"

"Oh it's nothing. I simply used a jutsu to make them all obedient, that's all."

"What?"

"Well I didn't have a choice did I? If I were to possess the forbidden jutsu that I've wanted for so long…"

"Sir Shiranami… did you lie to me?"

"I did no such thing, what I said before was true. Though I didn't tell you one thing, that the reason my father died protecting the jutsu is that I killed him."

Hotaru let out a horrified gasp.

"Yes I tried to rest it from him, but when he refused to give it up I struck him down. Lady Hotaru…"

Almost immediately, Hotaru tried to run.

Shiranami formed a hand seal and a kanji appeared on her arm.

She stopped and fell to her knees, but not of her own free will.

"It's useless, you're already under the control of my jutsu." he grabbed her by the throat "At last it's mine, now the forbidden jutsu is finally within my grasp!"

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Tatsu checked out something on the forest floor "Nothing, it's just an old branch. Why can't I just use my Shadow Clones again?"

"Because it would destroy any trace remains of Hotaru and the path she took." Utakata was growing aggravated ' _These footprints, whoever left them was carrying someone else. I'm sure of it._ This way."

"You sure?"

"Every search starts with clues left behind, that's one of the basic ninja rules. For people who boast about their masters, neither you nor Hotaru got very good training from them did you? It's ridiculous, this is what happens when you obsess over something stupid like masters." he bolted off.

"Wait a f*cking minute!" Tatsu stormed after him "There's nothing stupid about it you son of a bitch! I've learned so many things from Hayate-sensei! Taijutsu, ninjutsu, kenjutsu, that all goes without saying! But he wasn't just some strict taskmaster, he's so much more than that! He's been there for me through the darkest parts of my life, he's been the closest thing I have to family for as long as I can remember. Most importantly, he's taught me the most important things a ninja could possibly learn."

"And what would those be?" Utakata didn't know why he was asking, but he did anyway.

"Having the courage to always follow my heart and do what I feel is right, to never leave behind any regrets, to protect whatever I cherish most, and to have the resolve to do so! Don't you get it? Everything he's taught me is priceless, it wasn't stupid at all! You had a master too didn't you?"

"Yes." his voice was soft "And I have too many memories of him." he recalled one memory in particular in which his master Harusame berated him for risking his life unnecessarily, while also showing gratitude that his pupil was alive and well ' _He did care about me, or so I thought.'_ he thought back to his last memory of Harusame as he led Tatsu onward ' _It wasn't me he cared about, only the power inside me. He saw me merely as its vessel, but… what if Tsurugi says is true?'_

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Sunset came.

Tatsu overlooked a certain spot from the forest "Hey Utakata, is this it?"

"It is." Utakata stepped forward and led him to the entrance to the village.

"Hang on a second, this is the village of the Tsuchigumo clan."

"Wait, really? But all the tracks that we followed led right to this place, what happened here?"

"Lady Hotaru was attacked, the bandits were waiting for her. Also, all of the villagers who live here didn't think too highly of her either."

"I'd say the fact that nobody in this village wanted the forbidden jutsu nearby them would have to be pretty obvious."

"Yeah."

"And if Hotaru was attacked right in this village then the bandits and the village must be connected. The village turned a blind eye to them, but either way the bandits are using this place as their hideout. Also, the footprints that we found, they just don't seem natural. It could be that he's overconfident now that he has the jutsu, but it could also be that he's just planning to ambush us."

"So you're saying this is a trap?"

"I'm not sure, but still, tracking them went too smoothly. Beware when a chase seems too easy. My master-" he stopped himself short "Just be careful."

"Right." he tightened his headband "Sounds to me like you did learn something from your master after all. When we rescue Hotaru, you really should teach her some of that."

"Whatever." Utakata simply looked away.

"Enough about that for now, let's go." he forged onward, with Utakata following, but they stopped inside the village gates "Hey Utakata, are you really sure this is the place?"

"I think so." then he froze "Hold on." he looked to see a ball roll out of one of the houses "Not. A. Word."

Then a little girl came out of the hose "Uh…"

"Here." he handed it to her.

"Thanks mister."

"Sure."

"As thanks, you get this." she held up a paper bomb.

' _And this confirms it. My life is a running gag.'_ cue the explosion.

Lucky for him, Utakata had used his Bubble Dome to shield all of them "You alright?"

"Yeah." he let the girl go "What the hell is going on?"

"We're about to find out. Take a look, we've got company."

Tatsu looked and saw the villagers standing before them "Oh great, these pricks again. Now what, they've joined with the bandits to come after us?"

"No, that's not what happened. They're all being manipulated."

"So that explains the marks and the weird chakra."

"Yeah."

"Those sons of mother f*ckers, they've got a lot of nerve using innocent people like that even if these people are the legion of assholes!"

Utakata noticed them charging "Here they come." they began dodging various attacks.

"We can't attack, we've gotta run!" Tatsu ran, with Utakata following.

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By nightfall, they'd made their way to the center of the village.

"We can't go any further or we'll end up hurting the villagers." Utakata pointed out.

"Yeah you're right, but what do you think we should do?" asked Tatsu.

Then they heard a laughter, and the Magaki group made themselves known behind them "What happened to all that enthusiasm you had? You're both feeling pretty helpless aren't you?"

"Great, it's these assholes again. They're the ones responsible for doing this to the villagers."

"Go get them guys, don't given them even a moment to rest!" Akaboshi ordered, and the villagers charged.

" **Wind Style: Leaf Whirlwind!"** a green blur and a blast of wind stopped them "Now!"

" **Earth Style: Dark Swamp!"** a large pool of mud suddenly engulfed the villagers, trapping them in it at waist level.

Tatsu looked to see Lee and the others show up "Lee, Ino, Kiba. Not that I'm not grateful but what the hell are you guys doing here?"

"We were looking for Lady Hotaru." explained Ino "She left Mount Katsuragi alone and didn't tell anyone where she was going."

"Don't ignore us!" then Akaboshi and the rest landed on the ground and formed simultaneous hand seals " **Denko Sekka!"** lightning was channeled through the ground.

"Move!" Tatsu and the rest dodged it, and the lightning blast opened up a hole in the wall, allowing the villagers to get through.

"We're not gonna let you guys go any further, we can't have you interfering with the boss's ritual after all." and they all charged as the villagers threw kunai with paper bombs.

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" **Word Bind Jutsu."** Shiranami formed a hand seal "All of my years of painstaking preparation are about to pay of." he looked at Hotaru under his control "You must be overjoyed at the thought of being rid of the forbidden jutsu."

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Tatsu opened his eyes and found Utakata shielding them with his Bubble Dome "Lee, you guys alright?"

"We're fine." Kiba formed a hand seal " **Earth Style: Mud Wall!"** he formed various earth walls to protect Tatsu from being hit by enemy attacks, separating Tatsu and Utakata from them in the process "You two go on ahead, we've got this! We'll handle it, go save Hotaru."

Tatsu looked at Utakata "Alright, good luck guys! Utakata, let's go!" and he took off.

"Right!" Utakata followed him.

' _We're coming to save you Hotaru, I promise!'_

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Shiranami had positioned Hotaru in the middle of a sealing formula on the ground "It's no wonder it was completely useless to look for a scroll that contained the forbidden jutsu, to think he'd used his very own granddaughter as the hiding place for the jutsu. And En no Gyoja, what a cruel thing to do." he pulled her shirt down slightly, just enough so the engravement on her back was visible ' _Keep the pervy thoughts in check… for now at least._ If the forbidden jutsu is simply removed from its human vessel then its power will become lost forever. Also, unless the person who acts as its vessel is skilled and strong enough to control it then the jutsu can never be activated. Even if someone looking for the forbidden jutsu found it, they'd never be able to lay a finger on it. En no Gyoja's foresighted selflessness has kept it protected all this time. However, if it stays like this then the treasure's wasted. Right now, for my purposes you have become nothing more than a container to accumulate natural chakra energy, but you've yet to learn to wield the activation jutsu necessary to set off all that collected energy, and that's where I come into this story. The only survivor of the Tsuchigumo clan who has master that jutsu. What a lucky turn of events, the just that could restore our clan and help regain our former glory is on the verge of seeing the light of day. We'll use it to strike fear into the hearts of any who ever denounced our clan." he let out a sinister chuckle "What's the matter Hotaru? Doesn't that make you happy? Aw come on, smile for me. No? Then here." he pressed his thumbs against her face and forced her to smile "There, see? Now you're happy too, and you should be. You should be joyous!" he stepped behind her and formed a hand seal, then held out his hand " **Tsuchigumo Style: Forbidden Jutsu Release: Big Bang!"**

The formula around Hotaru glowed a flame-like color and began conversing and travelling up her body, until the mark on her back glowed white and energy began flowing into it from their surroundings.

"It's here, now the secret weapon that will restore our clan, the jutsu awakens after its decades long slumber! Now gather chakra, come and fill this vessel until it overflows! Come and manifest your terrible and beautiful power!" more natural energy began gathering.

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Tatsu led Utakata onwards "I can sense a huge amount of strange chakra gathering this way, he's making his move."

"I can tell what makes it strange. Look up." Utakata pointed upwards.

"What is it? I've never felt anything like it."

"That chakra… it's coming from the atmosphere and terrain. No, more like nature itself. Whatever this jutsu is, he's gathering nature energy. That's bad, really bad."

"So that's where we'll find Hotaru. Let's go."

"Right." and they took off.

' _Hotaru…'_ Utakata looked to where the nature energy was converging "There, that's where we'll find her."

"Let's move." and they bolted up the stairs.

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"Hotaru!"

Shiranami looked to see Tatsu and Utakata arrive on the scene ' _So they made it.'_

Utakata let out a low growl "We're too late."

"Akaboshi has been useless, couldn't they have at least held you off until I was finished here? Oh well, I suppose I don't mind having an audience."

"You bastard." Tatsu snarled "What the hell do you think you're doing to Hotaru?"

' _Sir Utakata…'_ Hotaru looked back, still unable to move.

"Well?"

"It's her dream." Shiranami said it in a way that made it sound obvious "All I'm trying to do is breathe life into it and make it into a reality, for the sake of the revival of the Tsuchigumo clan, and the key to that dream is to activate the forbidden jutsu with my abilities."

"And what abilities are those?" Utakata demanded "What do you need?"

"Hotaru doesn't have the skill to activate the forbidden jutsu herself, she's only able to accumulate chakra from the world around her. So when she's absorbed enough, I'm going to activate it for her from the outside. All of this is to restore the tarnished honor of the Tsuchigumo clan."

"You don't know the first thing about honor." Tatsu snarled "You're the living embodiment of staining the honor of your clan. You're taking advantage of Hotaru's feelings for her grandfather, for Tonbee, for her people. What you're doing right now, it's nothing more than dishonoring everything Hotaru holds dear."

"Who wants something as cheap and pointless as feelings? I'm going to steal the entire world."

"You what?"

"While I have this, even the Five Kage or Daimyo lords, no one can ignore my demands or me anymore. New village? No thanks, soon I will attain land and holdings that are even superior to the Five Great Nations."

"It's official, you're out of your mind."

"Oh I'm quite serious, now that I've come this far I can match the might of any of those nations! With this forbidden jutsu, taking over the world is no longer just a daydream."

"I knew it, I just knew it. You really just don't give a damn, all of the people of the Tsuchigumo clan don't mean anything to you do they?"

"Well that goes without saying."

"Well then what about Hotaru's feelings?"

"I honestly couldn't care less about them."

"She put her faith in you." Utakata snarled "Carrying that massive seal in her own body, she protected it with all of her might for the sake of her entire clan, and she entrusted you with it."

"What?" then Shiranami burst out with a malicious laughter "Look it's true that I killed my own father in order to satisfy my own ambitions, I'm not denying that, but you're in no position to talk. I know about you, all about you. You're listed in the Bingo Book, isn't that right? You're a rogue ninja from the Hidden Mist, you turn your back on your village and on its laws. I don't need to be lectured by someone like you, you don't care about your village either. You and I, we're quite alike I can tell. You can't admit it, but we're the same."

Hotaru thought back to what the Mist ANBU told her ' _No, I won't believe that. Sir Utakata is nothing like that man… and yet… and yet I…'_

Utakata thought back to what his master did to him ' _That day…'_

"Looks like I hit close to home, didn't I?" Shiranami taunted "Well whatever, but since Hotaru is so attached to her people I'll do her a favor. The new nation I form will be named after the Tsuchigumo clan. See? I'm not such a bad guy, using the name of the land of my birth will return it to glory. I'd say I'm a pretty great guy."

"Shut up!" Tatsu snarled.

"Look, it-"

"Maybe you're right." Utakata cut him off "It's true that I don't really give a damn at all, at least not about my village. But tell me, what will happen to her?"

"I'll keep her around as the ultimate weapon to launch the forbidden jutsu, and through her I can control it. The perfect vessel to build my nation."

"...Vessel? Did you just say vessel?" Utakata's voice was a low snarl, filled with malice and deep, burning hatred.

"That's right, she's my vessel!"

"ENOUGH!" Tatsu charged forward in a rage.

" **Word Bind Jutsu!"** Shiranami wrote a kanji in mid-air and sent it forward.

Tatsu froze when the kanji hit his forehead.

Shiranami pushed his arm down "Oh you were so close, but now you can't oppose me anymore, just like Hotaru can't." he saw the seal on Hotaru's back glow white "Good, more chakra. Let your body overflow with it!" he held out his hand, and more natural energy began flowing into Hotaru's body. Then he turned to the frozen Tatsu "And what about you? What shall I make you do now that you're under my control?" then he looked at Utakata "Perhaps I should make you two comrades turn on each other in battle."

' _Dammit… I can't move…'_

"Or maybe I'll keep you around as bodyguards, you two could be the protectors of my vessel."

"Forget it, never!" Utakata charged forward in his rage.

Shiranami bound him with a kanji to the chest "You didn't think you could get near my vessel that easily did you?"

"That's it, I've heard enough out of you." Tatsu snarled "Don't you dare call her that again. Hotaru is no one's vessel, do you understand?"

"You annoy me, be quiet." he formed a hand sign, causing Tatsu's mouth to shut "Don't you understand? You have no grounds to object. This was Hotaru's decision, she came to me of her own choosing. She agreed to become the vessel, it isn't up to you two anymore."

' _Hotaru…'_ Utakata thought back to Hotaru's note, then to memories of his time with her, and how, despite himself, he'd become very fond of her.

"Hotaru doesn't really want to be rescued by you or by anybody, so you get to stay right there and watch as the Tsuchigumo clan's village disappears in an instant.

Hotaru felt tears beginning to brim in her eyes ' _Sir Utakata… I'm so sorry… all of this is because I was so foolish…'_

Shiranami waltzed in front of Hotaru "Wow, so you still have the will to resist do you?" he held up his hand and moved it down, causing her eyes to close.

' _Sir Utakata…'_

"Just a little more, just a little more and Hotaru will be all filled up with chakra. You will be my witnesses to the glorious re-awakening of the forbidden jutsu!" he looked at Hotaru "You're doing great Hotaru, but our two guests must be getting impatient by now."

Utakata thought back to how he unleashed a single bubble when Tatsu had charged, and now it was coming forward ' _Come on, just a little closer.'_

"Now surrender to me completely, unleash the chakra that you've accumulated all at once! Take this place that has rejected you and reduce all of it to ashes!" then he saw the bubble.

' _ **Ninja Art: Bubble Bomb!'**_ the bubble exploded, sending Shiranami crashing to the ground.

Shiranami got back up, pissed "You sneak, when did you set up that attack? You know if you'd just behaved then you could've lived a little bit longer."

"Wanna… bet…?" Tatsu struggled to say, white chakra surrounding him.

"You think… you can… control us?" crimson chakra surrounded Utakata.

"My jutsu… why did it fail?" Shiranami wondered "These guys, their chakra levels are extraordinary!"

"You starting to get it now?" Tatsu's white chakra vanished "There's no way in hell we'd let you control us that easily!"

"What?"

"Hotaru!" once he was free, Utakata made a beeline for Hotaru.

"No, you can't!" Shiranami made a beeline to stop him.

"The hell you will! **Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** Tatsu summoned several clones.

" **Word Bind Jutsu: Rock!"** Shiranami dispelled the clones using his kanjis.

"You son of a bitch!" the original got close enough to slug him in the face.

Utakata reached where Hotaru stood motionless "Hotaru… Are you alright Hotaru?"

Then Hotaru's eyes suddenly shot open.

"Are you alright?" asked Tatsu "What the hell are we gonna do about this?"

"It's useless…" Shiranami waltzed over with a malicious chuckle.

"Back the f*ck up pretty boy, or do you want me to run my sword through your gut?"

"Just hold on." Shiranami held up a hand "Have you forgotten that thanks to my Word Bind Jutsu, I still have her under my control?"

' _...F*ck.'_

"Now out of my way."

"You're not going to win this."

"She isn't fully charged with natural chakra yet, but it'll have to do." he went over to Hotaru and put his hand on her shoulder "Now let's show them and everyone just how strong the forbidden jutsu is." he snapped his fingers, and Hotaru turned to face them "Alright, let us begin. We're going to show the entire world our power! No, mine! _My_ power!"

' _No… No…'_ Hotaru mentally pleaded.

"Everyone will die! **FURY JUTSU!"** Shiranami slammed his hand onto the ground.

' _NO!'_ Hotaru was engulfed in a white light that reached up to the heavens, turning into a white dome and surrounding them.

Tatsu and Utakata shared one collective thought ' _This is going to hurt.'_ as they were engulfed in the light, which then erupted in an explosion.

Shiranami observed the destruction around them "Take a good look Hotaru, it's magnificent. This is the the power of the forbidden jutsu! This is the art that we've honed together!"

Then Hotaru regained her awareness, and gained horror at the sight before her, tears brimming in her eyes as she saw Tatsu and Utakata lying unconscious amongst the rubble ' _No… it can't be… No, I didn't do that… no…_ Noooo!" she fell to her knees "No way… I can't believe it… I killed Sir Utakata!" tears began streaming down her face.

"Alright enough, this is so pathetic. I can't have a vessel with feelings that get in the way." he formed a hand seal.

The seal on Hotaru's arm glowed white, her eyes glazed over, and she fell back under his control.

"Now then, once more. This time get the entire Tsuchigumo village. All of those worthless villagers, we'll get rid of them all!"

The seal began gathering nature energy again.

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Ino was quick to punch out Benten "Not gonna lie, that felt good."

"I feel you." electricity began surrounding Kiba's body and claws "I've been wanting to try this out for ages! **Lighting Style: Tunneling Fang!"** he tore into Nango's back, grinding into his stomach and frying his body.

"Damn, not bad."

"I should hope so, it took me 6 months to get that down."

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Using Hotaru's seal, Shiranami began gathering more natural chakra "With this jutsu I'll divide and conquer, and make the Five Great Nations tremble!"

"No… No way…" Tatsu slowly lifted his head up "Never! There's no way… I'd ever let you… get away with this! Hey Utakata, get the hell up already! Come on you idiot this is not time to be taking a nap on the job!"

Utakata shook his head and snapped out of his daze "Right… We have to hurry and get Hotaru away from this maniac."

Shiranami smirked "You just don't know when to die. Fine, I'll give you another taste of the forbidden jutsu."

"Not gonna happen…" Tatsu snarled " **Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** he formed a hand seal and 10 clones blitzed into existence and charged.

"Oh no you don't." Shiranami wrote a kanji " **Word Bind Jutsu: Explode!"** the clones exploded.

"Utakata now's your chance, get Hotaru away from him!"

"Right!" Utakata took off after her.

"Not so fast!" Shiranami wrote a kanji " **Word Bind Jutsu: Flame!"** he summoned a massive wall of fire.

Utakata was forced to stop in his tracks ' _Dammit!'_

"Oh what's the matter? Is that all you've got?" then Shiranami found his hands bond by two bubbles "No, what have you done?!" without his hands, the flames subsided and Hotaru dropped to the ground.

"Hotaru!" Utakata quickly rushed to her side.

"Dammit!"

Tatsu promptly slugged Shiranami in the face, sending him crashing to the ground "Not gonna lie, that felt so damn good! Now I'm gonna pay you back big time!"

"Hotaru…" Utakata reached for her, only for her body to start glowing white ' _Oh crap, I know that isn't good.'_

"Enough of this crap, lay off the forbidden jutsu before we snap your face in half."

Shiranami smirked "It isn't me, I mean look." he sat up and got to his feet "My hands are completely bound."

"That doesn't explain what the hell is happening to her."

"I don't know, could be the result of absorbing too much natural energy."

"I don't give a rat's ass what she's absorbed, just stop it!"

"How can I with my hands bound like this?"

"Dammit." he turned to Utakata "I hate it but-"

"I know." Utakata formed a hand seal " **Release."**

Shiranami found his hands free "Now then…" he formed several hand seals, and the mark on Hotaru's shoulder began glowing white, but nothing happened "What?" he tried again, but still got nothing.

"What the hell are you waiting for? Do you want me to run you through with my sword?"

' _The Word Bind Jutsu, it isn't working. This is bad.'_

"What the hell gives? Do something you son of a bitch, it's getting worse!"

"If it keeps collecting natural energy like this then it'll explode and take the village with it!"

"You've gotta be kidding me!"

"The revival of the Tsuchigumo clan, the wishes of En no Gyoja, by taking on everyone else's selfish goals she's pushed herself to the breaking point."

"Shut up! What the hell would you know about Hotaru anyway? She kept the forbidden jutsu safe, she even sacrificed her own body for it! Her entire village of douche holes rejected her but she still worked to restore her clan, she shouldered the entire burden herself! But then she met Utakata, the idiot that's _still_ in denial about being her master." he failed to notice Utakata sprouting a tick mark "And even though you tricked her she came with you because she looked up to you! Don't you see? She'd finally found a true friend, somebody she could form a true bond with, but you took all of that and crushed it underneath your heel!"

"Hotaru found a true friend, a real bond? That's just a bunch of nonsense, I'm the same as her. With the forbidden jutsu, any master, any person, would sacrifice a student or anyone without hesitation. I'm saying it's what a good shinobi would do. It's just survival, I went through it too until I got sick of it. That's why I'd been on the offensive, I killed my father who'd been my master and I tried to steal the jutsu."

"You what?" Utakata's eyes shot wide.

"You're shocked Utakata? But that's just what you did."

"No, it wasn't… I didn't…"

"You did, and you know it."

"You're wrong." Tatsu snarled.

"What was that?"

"My master, my father figure… No matter what, he's always cared about me and everyone in his village, so even if we're not together I can always feel his thoughts, his desires, and our connection. He's been in my heart every second, and that's why I believe in him if nothing else. Hotaru has people like that too. Her grandfather, Tonbee, and now with Utakata. Your thoughts should've reached her Utakata, they should be within her heart."

Utakata's head snapped up and his eyes shot wide ' _Tatsu…'_

"She just wants a friend, a master, a bond. If you can't see that at all Shiranami, then you don't know a single thing about her, so don't pretend that you do!"

Shiranami smirked "Give me a break." he wrote the kanji " **Word Bind Jutsu: Split!"** he split open the ground in front of him.

"Dammit!" Tatsu fell in.

Utakata caught him by the arm "I've got you."

"Thanks, I owe you one."

"Oh no, I'd better escape before the vessel explodes!" Shiranami took off running.

Utakata pulled him out "You alright?"

"Yeah." he looked over to where Hotaru was glowing brighter.

"Hotaru, no!"

Tatsu stood "I'll make sure Shiranami doesn't get away."

"I'll come too."

"The hell you will. You're Hotaru's master Utakata, your place is here with her."

Utakata froze at his trigger word.

"I'm counting on you."

"...Very well."

"Now get to work." and he sped off.

Utakata made his way over to Hotaru and thought back to what Tatsu said about Hotaru having her bonds ' _My feelings… they're within her, and with my heart as well.'_ he placed his hand on the light dome, causing his body to glow with a white outline ' _Yes, my anger… it prevented me from listening… but I did hear, no, I felt, my master's thoughts, they were there…_ All of his thoughts, all of his feelings for me." he placed his hand on his chest "They reached me, and yet…" he made a difficult choice and spoke to the being inside him "Back then I swore that I'd never use your power again, but now for Hotaru I must. Please I need your help." he formed a hand seal, and the Version 1 chakra cloak surrounded him, summoning six tails that pushed down on the light in an attempt to compress it, only for a massive white light to engulf him.

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Utakata looked at his new surroundings, nothing more than a white void ' _This must be what Harusame told me about, a spiritual intervention.'_ he slowly walked forward, past several images of different familiar areas, and after battling through a sudden barrage of his chakra bubbles, he found in front of him a certain boulder ' _This is it… This is where I first met her.'_ he ran forward and found her sobbing on her knees "Hotaru…"

"I never wanted to hurt anyone…" Hotaru choked out "And yet I hurt Tatsu and Sir Utakata with my very own hands…"

Utakata knelt down in front of her "But look, I'm right here. Tatsu and I are fine."

Hotaru suddenly looked up "Sir Utakata…" she looked down again "I saw it happen…"

"But Hotaru…"

"I'm sorry… I betrayed you, Sir Utakata… somebody like me should just disappear along with the jutsu…"

"Don't say that." Utakata put a hand on her shoulder "I will not allow it."

She just kept sobbing.

"A good student should always listen to her master."

Hotaru froze, then slowly looked up "Did… you say master?"

"Come on, let's go."

Hotaru slowly wiped the tears from her eyes "Thank you…" then she froze and suddenly clutched herself.

"What is it, what's wrong?"

"No!" she suddenly pushed him away "You must leave Sir Utakata, please just get away from me. Go, run as fast as you can!"

"Hotaru…"

The mark on her back began glowing "I've done all I can, I can't suppress it any longer. Any moment the forbidden jutsu is going to tear me apart and explode!"

Utakata firmly grasped her shoulders "It's alright."

"Sir Utakata…"

"Just trust your master…" he held her tighter and placed his hand on the seal on her back, and it glowed with a bright white light.

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Shiranami ran through the woods as fast as he could "Let the village be destroyed, it deserves it! It will be eradicated!"

"I don't think so." Tatsu suddenly appeared in front of him.

"You again."

"You're not getting away." he then surrounded Shiranami with hundreds of Shadow Clones.

"You're a persistent bastard." Shiranami wrote the kanji " **Word Bind Jutsu: Flame!"** a ring of fire surrounded him, expanding and dissipating the clones "Fool, you can't stop me!"

"Wanna bet?" Tatsu emerged from the smoke, two Shadow Clones summoned, one on each side, the Dragon Blade drawn "You're not getting away, no matter what you do."

" **Word Bind Jutsu: Slice!"** he summoned several blades of wind.

" **Dragon Style: Crescent Moon Dance!"** both clones were dissipated, but the original Tatsu charged through the blades and slashed Shiranami down the middle, golden energy erupting from the wound and nearly splitting him in half "Now to get you back to Hotaru right away." then he heard an explosion and saw the white light being engulfed by a slimy-looking substance, which then promptly disappeared ' _Well, f*ck.'_

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Utakata retracted his Tailed Beast chakra, holding an unconscious Hotaru in his arms ' _It's over now.'_

"Utakata!" Tatsu sped towards them and screeched to a halt "Are you guys alright?"

"No worries, we're fine."

Hotaru slowly came to, saw Utakata's face, and smiled "My master…"

Utakata gave a mocking smirk "My, what a troublesome student you are."

"Hang on a second, what happened to the forbidden jutsu?" asked Tatsu.

"No need to worry, it seems to have disappeared."

"Hold on, disappeared? Well I guess it's alright then, I'm just relieved Hotaru is okay."

"Hey Tatsu!" a voice called.

Tatsu looked to see Ino, Lee and Kiba running towards them "Hey guys."

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Morning came.

"Right, the mission negotiated between the Tsuchigumo clan and the Hidden Leaf has been completed successfully." Lee reported.

Tonbee bowed "Thank you all for everything you've done for us."

"Well the forbidden jutsu was destroyed."

"Yes, I think that it's for the better. Lady Hotaru is safe and now no one will come after her."

"That's true."

"The townsfolk are happy, at last they'll welcome Hotaru and not fear her." the Tsuchigumo chief noted.

"Oh that reminds me, Tatsu wanted me to give you this." Lee handed him a note.

The chief took it and read the content ' _Shut up you hypocrite… no comment on that.'_

"Tatsu's words, not mine. Anyway Hotaru, are you still going with Utakata?"

Hotaru nodded "Yes I am, I still have so much more to learn from my master. But after I've trained with him, once I achieve the strength I need as a ninja and I can restore our clan's glory I promise to return here. That reminds me, where are Tatsu and Master Utakata?"

"They're on the hill outside of the village, apparently they're discussing something private. _More like Tatsu's trying to warn Utakata about the Akatsuki before they get to him.'_

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Tatsu stood with Utakata, looking down at the village "So you're taking Hotaru on a little training trip?"

Utakata sighed "She wouldn't quit bugging me until I agreed."

"Fair enough." a brief pause "Which one?"

Utakata looked at him, both surprised and not surprised at the same time "So you know?"

"I can sense it. So which one?"

"...Mine is six."

"My teammate has one, he's nine."

"Is that right?"

"Yeah." another brief pause "There's a certain group that's gonna come after you."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean there's a group of rogue ninjas targeting jinchuuriki and extracting the Tailed Beasts from them. According to my source, they've already captured the Five-Tails from the Hidden Stone and the Seven-Tails from the Hidden Waterfall."

"And I'm supposed to be able to recognize these guys?"

"They wear black cloaks with red clouds on them, and their headbands all have scratches through the middle. A former Hidden Mist ninja is among them."

"Kisame Hoshigaki?"

"Yep. They're known as the Akatsuki."

"So what're we supposed to do if Hotaru and I find any of these guys?"

"Well Orochimaru of the Sannin used to be a member and is now planning to use me and my friends to eliminate as many of the Akatsuki as possible. A friend of mine is undercover for us, waiting to strike against Orochimaru and take him out. His older brother is in the Akatsuki, so he's trying to take as many out as he can so he can get closer." he held out something "Here's what he looks like."

Utakata took the picture and nearly froze "That's Sasuke Uchiha, the Thunderclap of the Leaf. So his older brother is…"

"Kisame's partner, Itachi Uchiha. Anyway, if you come across Sasuke then tell him that you met Tatsu. He'll understand."

"Alright." Utakata tucked the picture away in his kimono.

"Anyway, we should get back. Hotaru and the others must be waiting."

"Right."

"And just be sure to take care of her, master." note the sarcasm.

"Are you trying to get me to blow your ass away?"

"Maybe."

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Later on, Tatsu was leading his group back to the village "I've gotta admit, it's really nice having a master. I even find myself missing Hayate-sensei."

"It's only been about 3 days." Lee pointed out.

"Yeah but tomorrow is the rendezvous at Tenchi Bridge, so our plan is gonna have to be put into effect. If this works, we'll take Orochimaru out of the picture for good."

"What is this plan of yours anyway?" asked Ino.

"...Just don't tell Kin, if you do then I'll have my head on a pike."

"No promises."

' _Yeah, I'm screwed.'_

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Hotaru looked around the field they were in "This is it master, this is the place where I first met you."

Utakata stopped her beside a boulder "Hotaru, will you wait here for me for a little while?"

"Is there a problem?"

"I'm meeting the ANBU Black Ops, I'm tired of all this running. I want to get permission to travel and train you."

"That's great."

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Utakata later made his way to the waterfall where he'd met Tsurugi before and sent out a bubble to locate them, only to get nothing "No response. Strange, did something happen to them?" he wandered through some bushes and found Tsurugi's ANBU mask covered in blood "This belonged to Tsurugi. _Tatsu was right, they must be serious business.'_

"So we finally found you."

Utakata turned and barely managed to dodge a barrage of slashes from a triple-bladed scythe, narrowing avoiding every slash.

"Quick on your feet aren't you? Then again, my attack speed is the slowest and my aim is the worst among all the Akatsuki. Still though, you're pretty good I'll grant you that." then Hidan emerged from the shadows.

"Careful Hidan." Kakuzu followed him "He's the Six-Tails jinchuuriki host, underestimate him and he'll finish you off."

"Oh come on Kakuzu, frankly I'd like nothing better than to be finished off."

Utakata's eyes narrowed and hardened ' _So these are Akatsuki._ Tell me, are you the ones who killed Tsurugi and his men?"

"They were made sacrifices for Lord Jashin, don't you dare insult him or you'll share the same fate." he thrusted his scythe forward.

" **Raijin: Scythe!"** a scythe made of pure lightning chakra appeared and batted Hidan's scythe away.

"What the hell?"

Then Sasuke suddenly appeared "So you're with the Akatsuki? Sorry to disappoint, but this is one jinchuuriki you won't be getting your hands on."

"And who the f*ck are you supposed to be?"

"Someone you don't wanna face." he formed a hand seal ' _Even if me and this jinchuuriki team up, we can't beat these guys without knowing their abilities. For now, distract and retreat is the best plan. I've gotta thank Asuma for teaching me this.'_ he formed a hand seal " **Fire Style: Burning Ash!"** he breathed out a cloud of gunpowder, then formed another hand seal " **Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"** he breathed out a blast of fire, which combined with the gunpowder and created an explosion.

"Son of a mother f*cker!" Hidan let out a loud cough and looked around once the blast subsided, only to see that both Sasuke and Utakata were gone "Dammit!"

"Don't bother." Kakuzu waved it off "We'll deal with him later, right now let's head for our next target. The Two-Tails jinchuuriki."

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Hotaru was surprised to see Utakata return with Sasuke "Master, what happened? Who's this?"

"This is someone Tatsu told me about, I'd run into some members of a group called the Akatsuki and he saved me." Utakata turned to Sasuke "I have to thank you for helping me back there, but now we'll be on our way." he and Hotaru began walking away.

"To where exactly?" asked Sasuke, stopping them in their tracks "You should know that the Akatsuki aren't going to stop trying to hunt you down, if not those two then someone else. They've got 10 members, each one an S-rank rogue ninja."

"So what are you suggesting then? We join you and go to someone like Orochimaru?"

"Of course not, don't be ridiculous. Orochimaru would use your student as a test subject and experiment on you, Stone will kill you and take her, Cloud has its borders closed off, without the good word of Tsurugi Mist would probably have you executed for treason, and you guys probably wouldn't last very long in the deserts of the Land of Wind."

"Then what do you suggest?"

"Tatsu sent me a message and filled me in on the details, you guys were off on a training trip right? What would you say if I could offer you a great place for both of you to train where the Akatsuki would never find you?"

"And where would this be?"

"Mount Hisho, the home of the summoning hawks."

Utakata blinked.

"The hawks are masters of water and lightning jutsu, they're very hospitable so as long as I put a good word in they'll without a doubt be willing to help you guys out, and their home is somewhere the Akatsuki will never be able to find you."

Utakata and Hotaru shared a look, then turned back to Sasuke "What will you expect in return for this?"

"Aside from wanting myself to eliminate as many Akatsuki as possible when they come looking for you, in the next few months I'll be forming a small squad. I'll want your apprentice to be on it."

"I'll do it." Hotaru said almost immediately "You helped to save my master, aiding you in your quest is the least I can do."

"Thank you." then Sasuke bit his thumb and formed several hand seals, then grabbed onto both of them in a chain " **Ninja Art: Reverse Summoning Jutsu!"** and they all disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

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(Later, once Tatsu finishes telling Naruto about his mission)

Naruto stared at him wide eyed "So you met a jinchuuriki?"

Tatsu nodded "Yep."

"And he knows about the Akatsuki?"

"Yep."

"And you messaged Sasuke about it?"

"Yep."

"Cool. So anyway, what's this new jutsu you've been dying to tell me about?"

Tatsu looked back, then turned back to Naruto and smirked "Adding a change in chakra nature to your Rasengan."

Naruto froze "You mean like adding my wind style, fire style or water style chakra into it?"

"Yep."

"Is that even possible?"

"I did it, it took me two years but I did it. I know for a fact that you're the only person besides me who can pull this off Naruto, and if the results actually pan out like I expect them to then your power will surpass Kakashi."

"Hold on, you're saying that with this super new Rasengan or whatever, that I'd surpass even Kakashi-sensei?"

"Perfect it enough and you might even surpass Jiraiya."

Naruto was now jaw dropped.

"Kakashi and I will be working with you two on one the entire time for this, and it will be a new kind of training that you've never experienced before. In short, I'm teaching you the ultimate ninjutsu I created. _Should I tell him how I'm training to enhance it? No, let's see how he deals with the original first._ I took me two years to create this jutsu, but that time is something we don't have, so with Kakashi's help I came up with a way to reduce the time several times over."

"How?"

"Through use of the Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu." he went over to the window "We've got a lot of work ahead of us when you get out of here, so be ready to hit the ground running. Meet me at the training grounds first thing in the morning.

 **A/N:**

 **So yes Utakata is alive, but he won't appear again for awhile. Hotaru will reappear while Sasuke is gathering members for Hebi. Utakata will have a big role before the whole Waterfall of Truth thing, that will be worked out in the Five Kage Summit.**


	9. Elemental Training, A Tragic Development

About a month had passed passed since the Tenchi Bridge mission and the Tsuchigumo Fury Jutsu mission.

Tatsu had been trying to teach Naruto to use the Elemental Rasengan while trying to enhance his own even further.

But none could expect the tragedy that was about to occur.

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Tatsu let out a sigh as he watched Naruto sleep in his hospital bed ' _I told the idiot not to overdo it, and yet he still pushed himself so hard mastering those wind and water jutsu. Oh well, at least he got them down, but even with Kurama's chakra he'll still be out for at least another hour.'_

"Oh yeah… that's it…"

' _Now I've gotta deal with this idiot's porn dreams about- wait, who's he dreaming about?'_

"Lower… lower… too low… right there…"

' _Is he gonna give a name?'_

"I want you to know…"

' _What now?'_

"I've always loved you…"

' _Give a name…'_

Then the door opened "Hey."

' _SON OF A-_ What the hell you-" he paused "Oh hey Asuma, when'd you get back?"

"Just a little while ago, figured I'd come check in."

"You couldn't have waited another 10 seconds?"

"Well that's quite a warm welcome."

"Sorry, it's just that I heard Naruto having a sex dream and I thought I could get a name out of him."

"Well did you?"

"I was about to before you came in."

"Oh. Oops. Anyway, Hayate's looking for you. He wants you to meet him at the training grounds by the Memorial Stone."

"Okay thanks, and let me know if Naruto starts talking in his sleep again." and he left.

Asuma frowned and looked out the window ' _While these two were gone and Kakashi was out of commission, Lady Tsunade sent me to rendezvous with Master Jiraiya in Kakashi's place. In that time, I confirmed that attacks on 7 different villages in 5 neighboring lands have been carried out by the same pair of shinobi. While there's been no incursion into the Land of Fire as of yet, we have to believe that it's only a matter of time before the Akatsuki assault the Leaf village.'_

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Yugito, the Two-Tails jinchuuriki was struggling against Hidan and Kakuzu, at least until she allowed the Two-Tails to fully manifest.

The real battle was about to begin.

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Hayate looked at the sky above and frowned slightly ' _This wind makes me feel uneasy. Something's gonna happen, something bad.'_

"You called?"

Hayate looked to see Tatsu approach him ' _Might as well tie up any loose ends while I have the chance._ Yeah Tatsu, I did. I think it's finally time, I'm gonna give you your final exam." he took one of the swords from his back and tossed it.

Tatsu caught it "Really? You said I'd have to be 18 before I got my final kenjutsu exam."

"Yeah but things change, and you shouldn't question your master." Hayate drew his own sword and got into a kenjutsu stance "Remember, this is strictly swordsmanship. No ninjutsu allowed."

"Oh and you still get to use your Transparency Jutsu?"

"I'm the master here, what I say goes."

"Of course it does." Tatsu formed a hand seal " **Crescent Moon Dance!"** he summoned two clones and charged.

" **Crescent Moon Dance!"** Hayate countered with his own, cutting down one clone.

Tatsu had his clone cut down one of Hayate's clones while he got another, then clashed his sword against Hayate's "This brings me back, remember when you first started teaching me?"

"Like it was yesterday. To be honest, thinking about how strong you've grown since then is what inspired me to give you this final test, to see if you're worthy to strike out on your own. After all, you're already above me in rank." they broke away and clashed again "It's only right I confirm that you don't need me anymore."

"What?" Tatsu slashed at Hayate's legs.

Hayate dodged and leapt back up to a tree branch.

Tatsu landed on one opposite to him "Come on, don't be like that. No matter what your rank is, you're always going to be my master and that will never change."

Hayate smiled slightly "That means alot coming from my student." then he turned serious "Now come."

"Right!" Tatsu leapt into the air and formed a hand seal " **Moonlit Night!"** he spun his arm and sword in a circular motion, then charged.

" **Secret Sword: Tsukikage!"** Hayate blitzed forward and met his charge in mid air.

Tatsu landed on a branch and held the cut on his arm.

Hayate landed and held the wound on his chest "I knew you'd gotten better, but you'd improved more than I could've imagined." he sheathed his sword and returned to the ground "I've seen enough. You pass."

Tatsu landed on the ground in front of him "That's it? It was so short."

"The greatest battles aren't always the longest."

"Yeah I know, but you really saw everything you needed to _that_ fast?"

"Yep." he wrapped Tatsu in a hug, catching him by surprise "You've really grown to be strong, I'm proud of you."

Tatsu slowly returned the hug "It's all thanks to you. You're the one who made me who I am today, I'll never forget that and I'll always be grateful to you."

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Kakashi raised an eyebrow "So you had your first wet dream?"

"Don't call it that you-" Naruto paused when he say Hayate come in "Oh hey Hayate-sensei, what's up?"

Hayate looked serious "I thought you'd be here Kakashi, I need to talk to you about something."

Kakashi blinked "Really?"

Then Hayate turned sheepish "Well if you've got a minute anyway. Oh hey Naruto, I brought you a little get well present." he held up a basket of apples.

"No no no!" Naruto started freaking out "No more apples! _Not after that dream! Man, she's supposed to be the quiet one but in bed she's an animal.'_

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Kakashi sat on a bench in the hall "So I hear you gave Tatsu his final exam."

Hayate nodded as he tossed Kakashi a soda "He passed with flying colors."

"I see. You must be proud."

"Very." he looked outside "Beautiful day."

"Yeah."

"Tatsu told me about the mission with Sasuke."

"I see."

"He and Naruto are coming along a lot better than anyone would've expected."

"Yeah I know, but Tatsu's still one step ahead. The next generation is growing up fast, they'll be leaving us in the dust before you know it."

"You make it sounds like we're all ready to pack it in already, like we're some old guys in our 50's."

Kakashi just chuckled.

"Still, their progress is good news for the Leaf. Those four have all done so much for the village."

"You mean those three and Lee?"

"Yeah, don't forget that Lee is the main reason we've got that trade agreement with the Hidden Waterfall."

"That's true." a brief pause "Well?"

"Well what?"

"What did you want to talk about?"

"Oh that." Hayate rubbed the back of his head "Well you see, the thing is…"

"There you are." that was when Yugao showed up "Just the man I was looking for."

"Hey Yugao, what's going on?" asked Kakashi.

"I just came here to find Hayate."

"...I see. So anyway Hayate, what was on your mind?"

Hayate shared a look with Yugao and blushed "Actually it's alright Kakashi, it's something minor and it's really not that important actually. No big deal, really. Well, see you later." and he left with Yugao.

' _...Now he's really got me wondering.'_

"Hey Kakashi." then Asuma came up to him "You got a minute?"

' _And here we go again.'_

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Despite having a rough time, Hidan defeated Yugito and captured the Two-Tails, with him and Kakuzu knowing that their next objective was clear as day.

The Land of Fire was their next target.

Once Zetsu arrived to take Yugito, Hidan and Kakuzu were on their way.

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Tatsu stood with Naruto at the training grounds "Alright, you sure you're up for this?"

Naruto nodded eagerly "You bet I am! So why are you making me learn all of these jutsu? When are we gonna get to the new awesome Rasengan?"

"Firstly, so you can explore your water nature to a greater extent, and so you get a better grasp of using your wind style chakra instead of Kurama's. Second, after one final test. You and me, one on one. No Kurama chakra, no Dragon Blade, no Genryu chakra, just our own power and our guts. You ready?"

"Hell yeah! **Wind Style: Skybound Wind!"** Naruto fired the Color Wind using his own chakra, turning it blue instead of red.

" **Wind Style: Skybound Wind!"** Tatsu ducked and countered Naruto's blast with his own.

Naruto leapt into the air and dodged it.

" **Water Style: Liquid Bullet!"** Tatsu shot out a blast of water from his mouth.

" **Wind Style: Air Bullets!"** Naruto countered the water blast with a wind blast, then landed back on the ground " **Wind Style: Skybound Wind!"** he fired another slash of wind from his fingertips.

Tatsu dodged it and got Naruto from behind, holding a kunai to the neck "You've improved. Not only that…" he looked to where a Shadow Clone held a kunai to his back "I think that's enough of a warm up, don't you? Now then, time for round 2." and he disappeared.

Naruto looked around, a Rasengan forming in his palm, trying to find Tatsu's location ' _Right, above, left, behind, those all rule out. Same old trick._ Below!" he slammed the Rasengan into the ground, rupturing it.

Tatsu emerged from the ground and appeared on the other side of it "Looks like your senses have sharpened."

"And you haven't learned any new tricks."

"Maybe not, but last time it took you and Sasuke together to beat me. Now I'm using the exact same tricks but seeing how you handle all by yourself without Sasuke to lean on. Anyway, you had your shot so now it's my turn."

" **Wind Style: Great Breach!"** Naruto breathed out a blast of wind.

' _Dammit, he took advantage while I was talking!'_ Tatsu leapt out of the way and clashed against Naruto, kunai against kunai " **Wind Style: Skybound Wind!"** he fired a slash of wind from his fingertips.

Naruto dodged and leapt into the air " **Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** he summoned a barrage of clones.

" **Leaf Dragon God!"** Tatsu initiated the whirlwind, summoned the Leaf Dragon God, and annihilated every clone in an instant "And new rule: no Thousand Years of Death! This is a battle, not a rape."

"Dammit. Plan B!" Naruto charged from the bushes, a Rasengan aimed at Tatsu's back."

Tatsu slammed his hand down on Naruto's head, pushing himself up and out of the range of the attack, then kicked Naruto in the back of the head and landed back on the ground "So then, you had enough?"

"Not even close! **Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** Naruto summoned hundreds of clones "Let's get him!" they all charged.

"You seem to be forgetting Naruto, I can do that too. **Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** Tatsu then formed his own massive army of clones, cancelling out Naruto's army.

"I should've figured as much, your chakra reserves always were unbelievable."

"Then how are you gonna like this one?" Tatsu leapt back and quickly blitzed through several hand seals " **Fire Style: Crimson Dragon!"** he breathed out a red fire dragon.

" **Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!"** Naruto unleashed a water dragon, countering it and creating a blast of steam.

Under the cover of the steam, Tatsu leapt back onto the nearby river and formed several hand seals " **Water Style: Tsunami Dragon Barrage!"** he unleashed several massive water dragons.

' _Now's my chance to show my new jutsu!'_ Naruto formed several quick hand seals " **Wind Style: Air Dragon Jutsu!"** he breathed out a massive wind dragon, cancelling out the water dragons and sending both of them back.

Tatsu was sent skidding back across the river and stopped himself on the other side "Alright, I suppose we should finish this." a Rasengan began forming in his palm.

"I couldn't agree more." Naruto formed a Rasengan in his own hand.

"Come!" Tatsu charged.

"Right!" Naruto charged, meeting Tatsu at the center of the river, each Rasengan colliding and then dissipating, the collision forming a large crater in the river.

Tatsu exited his combat stance and let out a sigh "Alright, I'm satisfied."

"Already?"

"This was never meant to be a full scale battle, I just wanted to see what you were capable of without using Kurama's chakra. Frankly, right now you'd probably beat Asuma in a straight up fight as you are now."

"Why Asuma?"

"Because he's got a wind natura too, along with the same unique fire nature as the rest of the Sarutobi clan, and he's even got a lightning nature."

"So you taught him your Purple Thunder jutsu?"

"I taught him the principles. His chakra is different since he doesn't have a visual Kekkei Genkai like me or Sasuke, so his version is called Jade Thunder. He transfers the chakra into his chakra blades and basically stab people with lightning."

"Cool."

"Isn't it?"

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After scouring the Land of Fire for awhile, Hidan and Kakuzu reached the Fire Temple, with Kakuzu recognizing the head monk Chiriku as a member of the Guardian Shinobi 12 and wanted to claim the bounty on his head of 30 million.

Chiriku put up a strong fight, but in the end he was ultimately defeated and killed by Hidan.

After that, despite Hidan's complaining, Kakuzu set out to collect the bounty on Chiriku before they resumed their mission.

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Tatsu was walking through the village at sunset, his mind wandering ' _Somehow I can't shake this feeling. Something's gonna happen. Something bad.'_

"Well if isn't Tatsu."

He turned to see Mizuki "Oh hey Mizuki, been awhile."

"Yeah, not since I took the jonin exams. Iruka is still being stubborn about that."

"So you're out on the field again?"

"Yep, and it honestly feels pretty good. I finally get to punch things again."

"Right?"

"I will miss teaching though, my students have all turned out so well that it makes me proud to think I once taught you guys. Naruto's probably grown the most, even now he's tackling training no one else could even dream of."

"Get real, I did it before him."

"And it took you 2 years and a gigantic dragon to get it down."

"Touche."

"It's still amazing though, Naruto's so much stronger now."

"I know, at this point he'd probably beat Asuma in a straight up fight."

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About 2 more days went by, and a monk by the name of Sentoki had reached the Leaf Village to inform them of the Fire Temple's destruction.

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Tsunade frowned at what she heard "I see, they even got Chiriku."

Sentoki nodded "I was out on patrol when the temple was hit, by the time I got back they were all…"

"It has to be the Akatsuki." Shizune guessed "They're probably scouring every inch of the Land of Fire, hunting down all of the jinchuuriki. Finally, they've returned."

"And here they're going to stay." Tsunade decided "We have 20 new platoons ready, tell them they're a go."

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Within an hour, the 20 platoons were gathered.

One consisted of Hayate, Mizuki, Shikamaru and Zaku.

Another consisted of Asuma, Dosu, Choji, and Ino.

The others mean absolutely nothing.

"That's all I have to say." Tsunade finished explaining the situation "If anyone has any questions then now's the time."

Asuma held his hand up "Here."

"Asuma?"

"Chiriku is one of the Guardian Shinobi 12, they would've have to get past him. Was he not there or something?"

Tsunade looked down, then looked over to Sentoki and motioned for him to explain.

"Lord Chiriku faced the two Akatsuki all on his own, but they cut him down." Sentoki told him grimly.

Asuma froze ' _Chiriku… no… it can't be…'_

Tsunade gave him a moment to process before she spoke again "For the pride of the Hidden Leaf Village and above all the safety of the Land of Fire, we must not allow them to roam free. I want to learn what their motives are but we warned, these enemies are formidable. Do not allow them to leave the Land of Fire, if you cannot detain them then they are to be slain. That's it, you have your orders. Go!"

They all scattered, but Hayate stayed behind for a moment with his team.

"I said go!"

"I know, but first…" he held something out to her "If something should happen to me, please give this to Tatsu." then they took off.

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Hayate's team stopped on a rooftop and met with Asuma's group "Now then…"

"Right. We'll start at the Fire Temple and split up from there." Asuma decided.

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Tatsu paused when he sensed something ' _Hayate-sensei, I don't know what's gonna happen but just please be careful. If anything happened to you, I don't know what I'd do.'_

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Sunset came, and the teams made their way.

Shikamaru went up to Asuma "Hey Asuma-sensei."

"What is it?" asked Asuma.

"It sounded to me like you knew that Chiriku guy from the Fire Temple pretty well."

"That's right, didn't I ever tell you? I fought with him as a brother. Remember, I left the Leaf when I was younger and became a member of the Guardian Shinobi 12." then he suddenly turned serious "The temple's nearby, let's hurry."

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Nightfall came.

Tatsu stood in a crater, holding his wounded arm ' _It's coming along, but it only works about half of the time. I've gotta get it up to at least ⅔ or I won't stand a chance next time the Akatsuki make their move.'_

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Morning came.

Tsunade was getting various reports in the negative for tracking down the Akatsuki and was losing her temper fast.

And Hayate and Asuma's teams still had yet to report in from the Fire Temple.

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The groups stared at the ruined gates of the Fire Temple.

"What's this all about?" Shikamaru wondered out loud.

Then two monks, one young and one old, came up to them "You come from the Leaf Village, correct?"

Asuma and Hayate nodded "Yes, we have."

"I see. We were contacted by the monk who's been in your care."

"I see."

"Greetings to you all." said the old monk, Bansai "I am the head monk in charge of the Fire Temple. I had been away from the temple for quite some time, but when I'd heard what had happened I rushed back as quickly as I could." he and the other monk, Zenza, led the groups inside "It was a terrible sight indeed."

They looked around at hundreds of coffins lined up around the ruins.

"We asked the neighboring temples for help recovering the remains."

' _This is horrible.'_ then Asuma spoke up "Excuse me sir, where's Chiriku?"

"Well actually, we've been unable to find Lord Chiriku's remains." Zenza told him.

"Well as much as I hate to bring this up, keep in mind that Chiriku does still have a bounty of 30 million on his head on the Black Market." Mizuki pointed out.

Asuma frowned "And if the Akatsuki knew then there's no doubt that they'd try to collect, so they probably took Chiriku's body with them. Where are the collection offices?"

"Let's see…" Zaku checked the map "Including the one closest to here, there are 5 in total."

Mizuki sent out some messenger birds "Now the other teams can head to the exchange points closest to them."

"Alright, let's hurry." Asuma started walking away.

"Please wait a moment, Lord Asuma Sarutobi." Bansai stopped him "For those of you who are about to enter a fight, allow me a moment to offer you a prayer. Please."

"It would be an honor." he and the rest hung their heads.

Bansai began praying.

Asuma had only one thought on his mind ' _Chiriku…'_ he looked up ahead of him and noticed a silhouette of Chiriku standing in front of him ' _Chiriku… I'm the only member of the Guardian Shinobi 12 left now… I wish we could've shared just one more of our bonlight talks. There were still so many things I wanted to talk to you about, things I wanted you to hear._

Bansai finished praying "Please be safe on your journey."

Asuma bowed "We cannot thank you enough. And sir, we'll do our best to find Chiriku."

"Please don't push things too far in your quest, as a former member of the Guardian Shinobi 12 you have a bounty on your head just like Chiriku. Please be careful."

"Well thank you, but you have no need to worry about me sir. You know the bounty on my head, it's 5 million more than his for a reason."

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Hidan and Kakuzu were heading to the bounty station when they ended up almost getting into a fight.

Hidan had attempted to discard Chiriku's body and continue looking for jinchuuriki, and Kakuzu warned Hidan that one day he would kill him since he found Hidan extremely annoying.

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As their group headed onwards, Hayate went over the mission plan with Asuma "My team will head to the exchange point and try to intercept."

"And my team will search within 20 kilometers of the exchange point in case your group doesn't find them." Asuma agreed "Just don't push yourself too hard."

"This is the Akatsuki we're dealing with, I can't afford that." a brief pause "If anything should happen to me, keep an eye on Tatsu for me will you?"

"Don't be like that, you'll make it out no sweat."

Hayate looked away ' _Somehow, I can't say that's true.'_

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Several of the other teams in the 20 platoons searched through various Akatsuki hideouts, but they found no signs of Hidan and Kakuzu.

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Training was coming along steadily.

Tatsu watched as Naruto attempted to learn the elemental Rasengan, using 50 Shadow Clones for each element, leading to a total of 150 Shadow Clones ' _Combining the change in chakra nature with the change in chakra form for the Rasengan makes it an A-rank jutsu in difficulty, so adding a change in nature would probably make this an S-rank jutsu. Any higher and it'd have to be classified as forbidden. Jiraiya, Kakashi and even the Fourth Hokage couldn't add the change in chakra nature. From here on out I can't teach Naruto anything, he's gonna have to discover it on his own just like I did. But I have faith in Naruto's abilities, I truly believe that he is the only shinobi other than me who can surpass the Fourth Hokage.'_

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Tsunade received a message from Asuma's and Hayate's teams in regards to the situation and their current plan.

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Shikamaru went up to Hayate "Hey Hayate-sensei."

"What's up?" asked Hayate.

"I was just wondering, what kind of relationship did Asuma have with this Chiriku guy?"

"What makes you ask something like that now of all times?"

"Well it's been 2 days since Asuma's last cigarette, and if a chain smoker like him suddenly quits cold turkey then I say something's up."

"Very observant, no wonder you're Asuma's favorite."

"No he's just getting soft since I can read someone like him so easily. Besides, when you play enough shogi with someone you learn how to read him like a book. In fact, I haven't seen him like this since the death of the Third Hokage."

"...As you know, Chiriku and Asuma were once part of the Guardian Shinobi 12 together. In a way, they were kind of like how you and Choji are."

"...Well knowing Asuma, he won't go without a smoke for long."

"You think so? Well that might've been true in the past, but I'm probably the only person who understands that Asuma didn't quit because of the death of Chiriku. Besides, these Akatsuki were strong enough to take out Chiriku so they must truly be powerful. Don't let your guard down, any of you."

"Right!" Shikamaru, Zaku and Mizuki chorused.

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Kakuzu and Hidan eventually reached the checkpoint and exchanged Chiriku's corpse, earning 30 million, and explained to a concerned collector about why Hidan was his partner, mainly due to the fact that Hidan couldn't be killed.

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"We're almost there." Zaku noted.

"Alright, stay sharp everyone." Hayate warned.

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While Naruto was struggling, Kurama's anger chakra was leaking out, but Yamato managed to suppress it.

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Hidan noticed someone come up behind him "Kakuzu, it took you long enough."

"Sorry to keep you waiting!" it was actually Mizuki, and he fired off some shuriken.

Hidan batted them away with his triple-bladed scythe but froze, then he looked up and realized that Shikamaru had trapped him ' _Dammit!'_

"Now!"

"Right!" Hayate suddenly appeared and stabbed Hidan with his sword, with Zaku getting the other side "That's one of them down."

"Ow that hurts, who are you people?" Hidan grumbled, unaffected.

Hayate froze, along with the others ' _Where Zaku and I hit him, he shouldn't even be standing.'_

"Quit sticking it in like that, I said knock it off. That hurts."

"What is this? Is he immortal?"

"Isn't that obvious you fool? Now then, once again, who are you people?"

' _I guess this isn't going to be as easy as you thought._ We are shinobi of the Hidden Leaf Village, our orders are to capture or eliminate you Akatsuki. We already know you usually operate in pairs, my original idea was to eliminate you first and then capture the other, but I suppose that plan will have to change."

Shikamaru studied Hidan for a moment ' _So this is the Akatsuki, his powers are incredible. My Shadow Stitching isn't going to be enough.'_

Hidan chuckled "Not your lucky day, I'm afraid you chose the wrong one of us to start with."

"Your partner, where is he?" then Hayate looked up to see a loud crash "Shikamaru!"

"He's here!" Shikamaru emerged and started running, forcing him to let go of his jutsu and set Hidan free.

"You're mine." Kakuzu charged.

Hayate blitzed away from Hidan and appeared between Shikamaru and Kakuzu "Zaku, Mizuki, take formation!"

"Right!" they took formation around him.

' _What should our next move be?'_

Kakuzu recognized Hayate ' _That fellow in front…._ Well well, for once Hidan it looks like you struck gold."

Hidan retracted his scythe "Kakuzu just stay out of this alright? I want these three for my ritual, you can have them after."

"Very well, but don't get careless or you're finished."

"Knock it off will you?" Hidan then used his blood to draw a diagram on the ground "I wish someone would finish me already, but that's not possible."

' _What's he doing with that diagram?'_ Shikamaru wondered.

"I'll attack him alone." Hayate decided "Try to trap Mr Immortal here with your Shadow Stitching, try to capture him even if it's only for a few seconds. That's all the time I need to land a finishing blow."

"This kind of move is crazy risky, one of us should go in with you."

"Don't you guys understand? This move is our only option."

' _I've never seen Hayate like this, and from what Tatsu tells me he's never seen him like this either.'_

"Look, the fact of the matter is that these two are stronger than I am. Zaku and Mizuki, provide Shikamaru with back up against the one in the mask."

"Now that we've seen the enemy's strength, wouldn't it be better for us to fall back and regroup?" Zaku suggested.

"We can't, there's no way they'll let us just turn around and walk away. If we don't stand and fight them here and now then we're finished and the Leaf will be in even greater danger. To penetrate the enemy's line, sometimes you have to make a bold move."

Shikamaru stared at Hayate and recalled a game of shogi with Asuma ' _From what Tatsu told me, Hayate and Asuma are a lot alike in some ways. They both hate risky bold moves, like using the Climbing Silver strategy in Shogi. He's not seriously risking of sacrificing himself, is he? One of these guys has untold powers and abilities, the other is immortal. It's true that we don't stand much of a chance but still, for Hayate to make himself a sacrificial piece? In the Climbing Silver, you sacrifice a piece only when your opponent is so powerful that you have no other option, but which piece do you sacrifice? Zaku, Mizuki and I aren't strong enough to make such a move worthwhile. On the contrary, Hayate would be at an even greater disadvantage having to fight them while worrying about us. He's right, we'd all be finished. What's the best move then? Our opponent has major pieces on the board, in order to capture a major piece we need to draw him out by baiting a trap, but the bait has to be tempting enough to make him take the risk. We're not strong enough, not tempting enough, to act as bait. We can only fight with the pieces we've got right now._ Climbing Silver, it's not a move that suits you."

"You don't have to worry, I'm not going to be the sacrificial piece. After all, I have you with me."

' _I can't attack the major pieces and I'm useless as bait, well I can try and distract them I guess.'_

"Have you finished strategizing yet?" Hidan ripped Zaku's tanto out of his side "What pests you guys are, poking me right and left. We have a way of punishing those who don't understand the pain of others."

' _Now!'_ Hayate drew his sword and charged.

Hidan charged and clashed against Hayate using Zaku's sword, only to drop the sword once he had to dodge Shikamaru's shadow "That's a nifty little weapon you've got there." he leapt into the air to avoid the shadows and fired off some kunai.

Hayate deflected the kunai and dodged a blow from Hidan's scythe, forcing it to be driven into the ground.

Hidan pulled himself forward and saw Shikamaru's shadows approaching him ' _I won't be caught by that.'_

' _I'll just keep on coming at you.'_ Hayata clashed against Hidan's scythe, skidding to a halt and being forced to one knee.

Hidan scowled, being forced to dodge Shikamaru's shadows.

' _Yes that's it Shikamaru, as long as he's being forced to fight while watching out for your Shadow Stitching it lessens his advantage.'_

Shikamaru took a breath ' _It's working, my Shadow Stitching is throwing him off enough to give Hayate a chance. But what if this whole gambit is a mistake? I mean, what's the point of gaining the advantage when you're fighting against someone who's immortal when we've got limited chakra and only one life? Oh well, it's too late to think about it now. This fight doesn't really start until I grab him.'_

"No you don't!" Hidan thrusted his scythe forward.

"No!" Hayate appeared and blocked Hidan's scythe with his sword, then kicked Hidan in the gut and sent him back.

' _Dammit!'_

"Hidan, don't underestimate them." Kakuzu warned.

"You stay out of it, just keep your mouth shut and watch."

' _Now!'_ Hayate fired a volley of shuriken.

Hidan dodged.

Shikamaru attempted to get Hidan with his shadow ' _So far the other guy really is staying out of it, but we can't depend on him to stay out of it forever.'_

"You almost got him that time Shikamaru, keep it up." Zaku told him.

"Alright listen up, may need you guys to back me up alright?"

"No you don't!" Hidan quickly dodged the shadows "It's always the way with you non-believers, you're so desperate to escape your fate you choose the obvious line of attack!"

"Now!" Shikamaru gave the order, and both Hayate and Mizuki fired shuriken "You've got nowhere to run this time."

"Then I won't run, I guess I'll just take care of the weak ones first!" he drew his scythe from the ground and charged at Shikamaru and the others.

' _No!_ Leave them alone, it's me you want!" Hayate charged at him, deflecting a kunai using his sword.

Hidan leapt over him and thrusted his scythe again.

Hayate stopped it, but received a light cut to the face.

Hidan then leapt off of the ground again, avoiding Shikamaru's shadow.

' _Alright, if targeted attacks aren't going to be effective…'_

Hidan licked the blood on the blade of his scythe.

" **Ninja Art: Smokescreen Jutsu!"** Hayate breathed out a smoke screen, engulfing Hidan, then formed a hand seal " **Leaf Style: Crescent Moon Dance!"** he summoned three clones ' _It's too risky to attack him myself, I'd better make sure my clones do it instead.'_

Within the smoke, Hidan found his way to the circle he'd drawn earlier, causing his skin to turn black with a white skeleton outline.

Immediately after, each clone of Hayate charged in, and the end result was part of Hidan's robe being slashed off.

"Hurts, doesn't it? Judgement has been passed. So what do you think? Helps you understand the suffering of others a bit more doesn't it?"

Hayate felt the same results, only with a large slash running down his chest, his left arm now hanging limp and useless ' _I was injured too by that attack, was it his jutsu or something else?'_

"I've already cursed you, and the ritual shall now begin. Well then, let's experience the ultimate pain together shall we?!"

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Tatsu looked in a certain direction ' _I don't like this, I've got a bad feeling about something.'_ then he froze ' _Hayate-sensei's chakra is stronger than it usually is… no, more like it's wavering violently. Whoever he's fighting, they're strong.'_

"Tatsu, something wrong?" asked Kakashi.

"I've got a bad feeling. Didn't you mention that the 20 platoons were sent after the Akatsuki?"

"That's right, Hayate and Asuma are leading the mission."

' _Then it's worse than I thought.'_ he stood.

"Where are you going?"

"Sorry Kakashi but I can't shake this bad feeling in my gut. You're taking over Naruto's training, I've gotta go." he formed a hand and sped off.

Kakashi stared at the objects on the ground ' _He was in such a frantic rush that he removed his Gravity Seals. What could be happening?'_

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The situation had turned.

"I don't understand, what happened to Hayate?" asked Zaku "The Akatsuki guy was hit, not him."

"There's no question about it, though maybe he was wounded by the backlash." Mizuki guessed.

Then Shikamaru felt the horrifying realization "Don't tell me…"

Kakuzu studied Hayate for a moment ' _This one's the Leaf's master swordsman, he'll give me another 5 million or so.'_

Hidan let out a maniacal laughter and pulled out his retractable spear "All of the preparations have been completed, and now you and I will share in the ultimate pain!"

Hayate readied his sword in his one good arm ' _I may be one arm down, but I'm nowhere near out. I have something to protect, and I will with every ounce of my strength.'_ and he charged.

Hidan stabbed himself in the leg.

Hayate's leg began bleeding profusely and he collapsed to the ground.

"It hurts doesn't it?" Hidan let out a maniacal laughter "And I didn't even hit a vital spot, but that kind of pain is the BEST! The other person's agony in the final moment of death seeps into my body, the pain is transcended and becomes the purest ecstasy!"

"Hayate is holding onto his left leg." Mizuki noted "Something strange is going on, his injury is the same as the one the Akatsuki has." then he felt the realization hit him "That's it!"

Hayate reached the same conclusion ' _I see, somehow he's linked his body to mine so that whatever injuries he suffers I feel too. Only difference is, he's immortal and I'm not.'_

Hidan removed the spear from his leg and let out a maniacal cackle "Now then, where do you want to feel pain next? Up here maybe, or further down? How about your legs, that'd be fun wouldn't it? What do you think?" he aimed the spear at his heart "Or should we just end it already? Well?!"

Mizuki's head snapped to the left "Shikamaru no physical attacks like Shadow Stitching, use your Shadow Strangle to hold him and hurry!"

"Already on it!" Shikamaru's shadow burst forward ' _Hurry, please!'_

"DIE!" Hidan thrusted the spear towards his heart, but suddenly froze.

"I don't think so!" Shikamaru caught him just in the nick of time.

"You think you can stop me?!"

Mizuki breathed a sigh "Good job Shikamaru. Zaku, how long has it been since we called for that backup?"

"About 10 minutes or so." Zaku told him "At least another 20 before they reach us."

"Dammit. _We're stuck, now what do we do? We can't kill him or we'll kill Asuma too._ To nullify a continuous jutsu you have to take out the caster, but here that isn't an option."

"Every jutsu has its limitations." Shikamaru panted slightly "There's always a loophole, we just have to calm down and analyze him."

Hayate let out a sigh ' _Shikamaru saved me, but now I've still gotta think of a way to break this jutsu. Shadow Strangle doesn't last too long, I only have a little time to think.'_

"If this is going to drag on then I can help." Kakuzu spoke up "Can't let a cash cow get away."

' _Now the other one's getting involved? This is bad.'_

"I told you to stay out of it didn't I? Now but out!" Hidan barked "I don't need your help, I can handle it!" he received a grunt.

' _Truth be told here, we're lucky the other one hasn't entered the mix yet. Even so, what can we do now?'_

' _Only a matter of time now I guess.'_ then Kakuzu looked at Shikamaru ' _So he's the one.'_

Shikamaru's mind was racing, struggling to come up with a solid strategy ' _Think back, this is exactly the kind of impossible situation you've been preparing for.'_ he thought back to a previous conversation with Asuma about taking on the Akatsuki ' _Asuma gave you tons of advice, now think! You've got to think! His words, personality, speech patterns, clothes, weapons, his behavior, the meaning behind all of his actions and how every move he makes relates to the next. From it all can be gleaned insight, a hypothetical framework of the jutsu, its probability and selection. The gods, punish. Curse, ritual. Preparations.'_ then he felt it hit him.

' _Trust that Shikamaru has analyzed him already.'_ Hayate told himself.

' _That's it!'_

"You come up with something Shikamaru?" asked Zaku.

"Yeah, I think so."

' _I can't believe he was able to do it. Then again, Sasuke did mention that this guy had an IQ of over 200, but to manage that while he was in the middle of casting a jutsu.'_

' _Shikamaru can think 10 steps ahead and imagine over 200 possibilities, and he has the instinct for picking just the right one.'_ Hayate noted.

"Alright, here goes Hayate." slowly but surely, inch by inch, Shikamaru started forcing Hidan out of the circle he'd drawn.

' _No way, he's caught onto my jutsu!'_ Hidan realized.

' _Come on… come on…'_

"What are you doing?" asked Zaku.

"I'm trying to force the stupid creep out of that weird diagram he drew on the ground, that'll undo both the jutsu and his curse."

"What do you mean?" asked Mizuki.

"That giant scythe of his, it's got 3 blades. Judging by the shape of it, I'd say it wasn't made for mortal blows but extending the wielder's range, allowing him to reach his opponent and cause some degree of external injury, great or small. In short, if he can inflict even a single shallow abrasion then his jutsu will lead to the certain death of his opponent."

"That's his curse then? But how does it connect back to the initial wound inflicted?"

"Blood, in order to link himself to his intended victim he has to take his opponent's blood into his own body."

"Wait, we saw him lick the blade before. So the blood… I see, if he can wound his opponent and get even the slightest drop of it then he can curse them."

"When he licked the blood his body changed color, so it was pretty easy to figure out that part. But that's not all there is to it, there's one more crucial step that needs to be completed to activate the curse."

"Wait, there's another step?" Zaku sounded incredulous.

"That guy totally ignored the smokescreen Hayate threw at him earlier, he didn't even bother to avoid it and just went straight for that marking. Then once inside it, he said the ritual would begin, then barked about the preparations being done, so my guess is the curse jutsu can only be completed while he's inside the diagram." he pulled Hidan back slightly further.

"You little brat!" Hidan growled.

"It's not my fault, you run your mouth too much."

' _He's brilliant.'_ Mizuki mentally breathed.

"Enough talk!" Hidan exploded "I'm going to tear you apart now and kill you later, you hear me?!"

"There won't be a later!" Shikamaru pulled him all the way out "He's out!"

"Alright, let's see if that did the trick." in order to test and see if Shikamaru's plan actually worked, Hayate fired off a single shuriken, cutting Hidan's ear slightly, but Hayate wasn't affected in the slightest.

' _Yes!'_ Shikamaru quickly stabbed Hidan using the Shadow Stitching jutsu.

"How dare you…" Hidan snarled "Still… stuck…"

"I'm at my limit… can't hold him… much longer…"

"Nicely done…. Shikamaru…" Hayate got back on his feet, panting heavily, and slowly limped forward as he raised his kanata.

Hidan for once was actually panicking "Kakuzu, help me out here!"

Hayate pointed his sword.

"You idiot, do something already!" his pleas were ignored.

With one clean strike, Hayate decapitated Hidan, causing his headband and necklace to fall to the ground.

"We did it." Zaku muttered in a way that made him sound like he couldn't believe it "We really did it."

"Yeah…" Shikamaru released his jutsu, causing Hidan's headless body to fall to the ground with a thud.

' _No doubt about it, that was way too close.'_ Mizuki noted ' _If it wasn't for Shikamaru assessing the situation then we would've been done for. He really is something, if it wasn't for the Nara laziness then he'd already be a jonin. No wonder he's Asuma's favorite.'_ he caught Shikamaru as he fell to his knees "You alright?"

"Yeah… that's one down…"

"And one to go. Right. F*ck."

Kakuzu was clearly unfazed by Hidan's decapitation "If you wanted my help Hidan, you should've asked sooner."

Hidan's eyes suddenly snapped open like nothing happened "It was you, you're the slow one Kakuzu!"

Hayate and the rest froze ' _What?!'_

"It was on purpose wasn't it?!"

"You're the one who told me to stay out of it from the start." Kakuzu pointed out "I don't think you're in any position to complain right now."

' _...I can't describe how much I hate having to do this._ Alright alright, point taken. So maybe I did tell you not to butt in, but I assure you it wasn't out of disrespect or anything like that. Anyway Kakuzu, would you mind bringing my body over here for me? Come on Kakuzu, won't you please bring my body back to my head? Please Kakuzu, old friend? Pretty please?"

Without a word, Kakuzu blitzed over and grabbed Hidan's head.

"No hey wait, what are you doing? I asked you to bring my body to my head, not the other way around! Don't you get it?"

"It's lighter this way."

"What do I care? This isn't about you! Hey, are you even listening to me?"

Kakuzu started pulling on the hair.

"Ow ow that hurts, hey Kakuzu you're pulling my hair, you mind?"

"I would think your neck wound would hurt more."

"You idiot of course it does, it hurts like a son of a bitch! This is no ordinary injury let me tell you!"

Hayate's mind was racing ' _Unbelievable, he's… he's still alive?'_

"Yeah it really really hurts you know, you fools have no idea how incredibly painful it is having your head sliced off!"

"What the hell is going on?" Zaku muttered "Even Orochimaru wasn't that freaky."

"Yeah, but you've gotta look on the bright side…" Shikamaru panted "Even if he's still alive, so long as he's not attached to his body he can't perform any jutsu. He might be immortal, but he's completely useless."

Mizuki sighed "True, but that still means we've still got one more to go."

"Yeah." Shikamaru looked at Kakuzu ' _But still, this guy, I suspect he may be even stronger and faster than Mr Immortal, and someone who won't let himself get carried away. A cool customer, not fazed a bit by his comrade going down, a heart of stone. I don't think we've seen his true power yet, maybe that's intentional to make us overconfident. This kind of guy is gaugey, always gauging his opponent, looking for any way to gain an advantage. It would be in his best interest to make us think we've got the upper hand.'_ he slowly got to his feet, then suddenly let out a cough and collapsed again.

' _Shikamaru has reached his limit, and I'm wounded.'_ Hayate noted ' _While we may have gained the upper hand by disabling the Akatsuki, it also means we've created an opportunity for us to escape. In either case, my main worry is Shikamaru's condition.'_

' _We can't leave ourselves open to attack!'_

"Enough of this." Kakuzu blitzed in front of Hayate and stomped on the wound in his leg, then slammed the briefcase on his head.

Hayate was sent tumbling back ' _This one…'_

Kakuzu then promptly kneed Hayate in the spine, then went over and started working to fix Hidan's little problem "Since you asked for my help I'm giving it, whether you want it or not."

Hidan grunted "Yeah alright, fine."

Using a thick thread from his arm, Kakuzu began stitching Hidan's head back onto his body.

"Ow, hey that hurts."

"Just hold still."

' _Those two, what're they up to now?'_ Mizuki wondered.

Kakuzu finished after a few moments "That should do it."

' _He couldn't have…'_

Hidan stood, his head reattached "That's better."

' _The masked one really reattached his head…'_

"Finally, in one piece again." Hidan began cracking his neck.

"Don't move it too much yet or it'll come right off." Kakuzu warned.

"Don't be such a nag Kakuzu."

"What the hell are we up against?" Zaku muttered.

Shikamaru's mind was racing ' _One is immortal and the other has a jutsu can sow a body back together? Man, it's just one thing after another with these guys. They're unbelievable.'_

"Your battle prep and repartee are as drawn out and tedious as your rituals, just stick with the cash cow." Kakuzu growled.

Hidan looked over to where Asuma lay "I better be sure to pay him back in spades, it wouldn't do to violate the sacred commandments."

"Not that again. Well anyway, as for the other three leave them to me."

"Stay back!" Zaku whipped out a scroll and summoned a bow staff.

"Alright." Kakuzu charged in to meet him.

" **Water Style: Syrup Trap!"** Mizuki spat out a large pool of sticky water ' _Note to self, be sure to thank Izumo for that.'_

Kakuzu retreated back before the water could hit him.

" **Earth Style: Boulder Staff!"** Zaku channeled earth chakra into the Staff, creating a layer of rock around it, and threw it forward.

When the dust settled, Kakuzu stood _next to_ a crater in the ground "I presume your plan was to distract me with that eye-grabbing airiel display, while all the time your friend was launching a ground attack at my feet with this strange liquid. However, it didn't quite come off." he held out his hands "So much wasted effort."

"Wanna bet?" Zaku held up two fingers, and the Boulder Staff shot out of the ground, and he caught it.

Kakuzu tried to move, but found himself caught from the syrup trap that went into the first hole and came out of the second, getting him from behind "What a surprise."

"That's it Mizuki, keep him there!" Zaku charged in and attempted to splatter Kakuzu's skull across the ground using his Boulder Staff "Gotcha!"

However, using his special ability, Kakuzu unwinded his arms using his thick black threads and caught Zaku in a chokehold.

"Zaku!" Mizuki dodged several grab attempts, but in the end he was caught too.

"They're giving me a run for my money."

Hidan looked back at Kakuzu's fight, then looked down at Hayate "Sounds like Kakuzu's just about worn out, I'd better cut this short and step in otherwise I'll have to keep hearing about how my rituals go on forever." he waltzed over to Hayate's unconscious form and raised his spear for a fatal blow "Nighty night."

"I don't think so." Hayate's eyes shot open as he grabbed his katana and slashed, stopping the spear, though his shoulder was cut in the process.

Hidan smirked and retracted his scythe, intent on cutting Hayate down from behind.

Hayate didn't notice it ' _What's his next move?'_

"HAYATE!" Shikamaru screamed "Behind you!"

' _Dammit!'_ Hayate ducked at the last possible second.

Hidan found his scythe imbedded in him instead ' _Huh.'_

"How many times do you think I'll fall for-" Hayate suddenly froze, then fell over in pain.

Hidan began cackling maniacally as he stood inside the diagram "You fool, it's the same trap again!"

Hayate began coughing up blood.

"Dammit! Hayate!" Shikamaru began rushing over as fast as he could, though that wasn't very fast considering how exhausted he was ' _So in the end, in the end you decided to do it after all didn't you? To sacrifice yourself for the sake of your comrades! It's all my fault, if only I'd come up with a better strategy then none of this would've happened! Dammit! It's my fault, MY FAULT! If I hadn't been such an idiot, this wouldn't be happening!'_ then he suddenly tripped and fell to the ground.

Hidan kept maniacally laughing "Well? Does it hurt? How about now?" he pushed the scythe in further.

Hayate coughed up more blood ' _I guess… my hunch was right…'_

"Finally…" with another maniacal chuckle, Hidan pulled out another spear "Now I can finally savor it… savor the pain caused by your death!"

"NO!" Shikamaru screamed to no avail.

Hidan stabbed himself in the heart.

Hayate sat there motionless, until he coughed up more blood.

Hidan reached his pain climax "Yes… that's the stuff…"

Hayate collapsed forward and lay there motionless.

"HAYATE!"

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Yugao noticed a flower drop and split in two in front of her, and immediately knew what it was related to ' _Hayate…'_

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"HAYATE!" Shikamaru ran forward, but collapsed and reached forward in vain "Hayate…"

Hidan retracted his spear as his skin returned to normal "All done here, how about you?"

"Just give me a minute." Kakuzu prepared to tighten his grip.

"Damn you… damn you…" Zaku rasped out.

Shikamaru struggled to get to his feet "You… son of a… You're gonna pay for that!" he charged in.

"I wouldn't put any money on that." Kakuzu then thrusted Zaku into Shikamaru, sending them both to the ground.

' _Dammit… it's no good… I'm powerless…'_ then he noticed smoke envelope the area.

Kakuzu recognized it "Smoke bombs?"

" **Rasengan!"** a spiralling ball of chakra slammed into Kakuzu's side, sending him flying into the building and forcing him to release his grip.

"Kakuzu what the hell's going on over there?" Hidan demanded "Dammit I can't see shit!"

"You think you can hurt my master and live to tell the tale?" a pair of legs wrapped around Hidan's neck and forced him out of the diagram, just as another Rasengan slammed him into Kakuzu.

Shikamaru recognized who it was "Tatsu!"

Sure enough, Tatsu appeared from the fog "I'm sorry I'm late, I felt something off and rushed here as fast as I could."

"Tatsu!" then the cavalry arrived.

"Ino, Choji, take Shika and Hayate-sensei somewhere safe. Asuma, Dosu, hold them off while I check on Hayate-sensei. I'll be back in a minute."

Hidan and Kakuzu emerged, both annoyed "Great, reinforcements."

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"Hayate-sensei!" Tatsu knelt down beside him and checked for a heartbeat ' _Come on, come on, come on… Yes! It's faint, but his heart's still beating!'_ he bit down on his thumb " **Summoning Jutsu!"** he slammed his hand onto the ground.

A blue dragon appeared " **What's up Tatsu?"**

"Mizuryu, I need you to take Hayate-sensei to the Leaf Hospital right away. Ino, go with them and use your medical ninjutsu to buy as much time as you can. Get going!"

Ino nodded "We're on it."

That was when Kakuzu showed up "I'm not giving up my bounty."

"Is that right?" Tatsu stepped forward "Take Hayate-sensei and get out of here as fast as you can while I keep these two busy. I'll join you when I'm done, now go!" he charged in and engaged Kakuzu in taijutsu.

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Hidan found himself confronted by Dosu and Asuma "You can fight it all you want, you're still going to end up as part of my sacred ritual. And that's why…" then he paused and suddenly started speaking to someone else "Come on, I only need a little more time sir. We're just about to get to the good part here."

" _We're sealing the Two-Tails and then the Three-Tails, return at once. This is top priority."_

"Please sir, just a few more minutes? Is that too much to ask?"

"Enough Hidan." Kakuzu appeared beside him.

' _Are they communicating with someone through some sort of telepathy jutsu?'_ Tatsu wondered.

"We'll be back in no time, so prepare yourselves." Kakuzu picked up "Let's go Hidan."

"That blasted leader of ours, one of these days I'm gonna put a curse on him."

Tatsu turned towards the others on the rooftop "Ino, Shika, take Hayate-sensei and go! Now!"

"Oh no you don't, you guys stay right where you are until we get back. Besides, he's gonna die anyway. Don't worry, we'll be back before you know it." and they both disappeared in puffs of smoke.

' _And when you do come back, you'll have me to answer to.'_ Tatsu quickly rushed back over to the others "Guys, hurry up!"

"I'll start medical ninjutsu." Ino told him.

"Don't say it, do it!"

"No… don't…" Hayate's voice was soft, barely a whisper "Listen, don't even bother trying to heal me… I wouldn't make it anyway… I can feel it… and I bet you guys, you can all feel it too can't you?"

"Stop talking sensei, save your energy. Ino!"

"Right!" Ino placed her hands on Hayate's chest, but began moving them around ' _Here… and here too? Four vital spots?'_ storm clouds began looming overhead ' _It's too late…'_ tears brimmed in her eyes.

Tatsu froze ' _No, no, no, no, no…'_ he clenched his fist so hard it began bleeding ' _Dammit…'_

"I think I… understand… what the Third… what Kuroga-sensei meant…" Hayate's voice was weak and soft "I was never… very quick… to figure things out… I've got… something I… want to tell… all of you… Ino… Shikamaru… Asuma… Tatsu…"

"Stop it sensei, just stop talking and save your strength-"

"Tatsu." Asuma's hand firmly grasped his shoulder "You too Shikamaru, Ino. Listen closely to Hayate's words. They'll be his last."

"Ino…"

"Yes?" Ino looked towards him.

"You're a compassionate caregiver… and a kind and gentle soul… Tatsu… he's so awkward and clumsy… watch over him for me…"

"Yes sir…" Ino let her tears spill.

"Shikamaru."

"Yes?" Shikamaru looked up.

"You're razor sharp… with the instincts of a great ninja… truly worthy of becoming Hokage… you'd probably try to avoid it though… since you'd find it such a drag… you've got such great potential… I want you to live up to it…"

"I'll try…"

"Asuma…"

"Right here old friend." Asuma knelt down beside him.

"You're a loyal friend… with a good heart… and a great team… make sure they aspire to greatness… and make sure… you take care of Tatsu for me…"

"Will do…"

"And cut back on the smokes a little…"

"I only promise to try."

"That's all I ask…" he turned to the last one, his student "And finally, Tatsu…"

"I'm here sensei." Tatsu held Hayate's head up, refusing to shed tears "Right here…"

"Tatsu…you've been like a son to me… you're a thoughtful and loyal friend… a truly kind soul… in time, I know you'll become stronger than anyone… and you'll protect everyone you care about… which reminds me… remember when we talked about the King?"

"Yeah… you said I'd know when the time was right."

"Well now I'm going to tell you who the King is… lean closer…"

Tatsu leaned in and held Hayate's head closer.

Hayate whispered it in his ear.

Tatsu's eyes shot wide at what he heard "Hayate-sensei… that's why you…"

"I'm counting… on you…" he smiled slightly "I'm glad… I got to meet you… walk with you… laugh with you… be with you… thank you for everything… Tatsu…" and with that, he fell still.

With tears now freely streaming down his face, Tatsu gently embraced Hayate's body as the rain began pouring down "Sensei…"

Dosu knelt down beside him "You should be proud of your master, his death was truly worthy of a shinobi."

"Not now Dosu… just not now…"

Getting the memo, Dosu stepped back.

"Hayate-sensei… you were everything to me… when my brother died, you were there for me. In every moment of my life, you were there… for so long, you were my entire world… you were my everything… you picked me up when I was down… you always protected me… but now, I couldn't even protect you when you needed me most… please, forgive me…" tears began flowing even harder than before.

Dosu, Ino and the rest just hung their heads.

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In a faraway underground hideout, Sasuke's Chidori flared into life as he activated his Sanda Sharingan, destroying the training dummies without even touching them, only to feel a chill rush down his spine ' _Something's wrong.'_ he looked back to see Orochimaru "What do you want?"

Orochimaru smirked "Nothing in particular, just learned some interesting information that I thought you'd like to know. The Akatsuki are making another move."

"That being?"

"They destroyed the Fire Temple, and killed Leaf jonin Hayate Gekko."

Sasuke stiffened, then turned "I have something to do, I'll return later." and he left.

' _My dear Sasuke, your ties to the wilted Leaf shall soon be severed before you even realize it.'_

 **A/N:**

 **That little tidbit about Lee and Shibuki was a reference to the Naruto OVA Protect the Waterfall Village.**

 **Naruto using the Skybound Wind is because it's using his own chakra instead of Kurama's.**

 **Tatsu's been neglected these past few chapters, so I thought it'd be nice to give him some character development.**

 **There's a reason Tatsu didn't go on this mission, that will be revealed at the end of the story arc.**


	10. Rasehshuriken Unleashed, Master Avenged

Hayate Gekko had fallen at the hands of Hidan and Kakuzu of the Akatsuki, thus making the mission to capture or eliminate a failure.

With this development, Tatsu, Asuma, Dosu, Ino and the rest grimly carried Hayate's body back to the Leaf to report the outcome of the mission.

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Training had been coming along well.

With one Shadow Clone aiding him, Naruto finally formed a fully completed and perfected Wind Style: Rasengan "Alright, I think I'm finally getting the hang of it."

Kakashi raised a curious eyebrow "I see, so that's what you came up with."

"Yeah, after having day's worth of nightmares about Captain Yamato using that creepy face, I decided to go back to my roots."

"...You mind explaining? You've lost me."

"By going back to the roots of the Rasengan, I just reused an old method. Back before I left to train with Pervy Sage it took two of me to produce the original Rasengan. I realized I'd need another set of hands if I was gonna handle the change in chakra nature and the Rasengan's change in form at the same time."

"Alright, well done. _Of course, only Naruto has the chakra reserves and the skill to pull this off. I couldn't accomplish that, I bet even the Fourth Hokage couldn't.'_

"Now then, let's see if I can push it further."

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At the same time, Hidan and Kakuzu, along with the rest of the Akatsuki, were in the middle of sealing the Two-Tails, which would take three days, and then another three days for sealing the Three-Tails that Deidara and Tobi had captured previously.

When Hidan started complaining like usual, the leader revealed the plans of the Akatsuki to establish a war monopoly while obtaining all 9 Tailed Beasts for their ultimate goal: world domination.

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Tsunade hung her head when she'd heard what had happened "I see…"

"Milady, what about Yugao?" asked Mizuki "Who will tell her?"

Tsunade let out a long sigh "Notify everyone else regarding the funeral services, I will personally inform Yugao-"

"No." Tatsu cut her off "I'll do it. I'd like to tell her myself. I have a message for her from Hayate-sensei."

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By this point, Naruto stood at the center of a deep crater as he collapsed from exhaustion "I think… that's all I… can manage…"

"So it looks like you're good for about two per day." Kakashi noted "Just what I'd expect from a ninja like you Naruto, you're full of surprises. I'm not sure how to say this, but I'm really starting to take a liking to you kiddo."

Naruto fell back, seriously creeped out "Don't say creepy stuff like that out of the blue sensei, you're freaking me the f*ck out!"

"I didn't mean it like that."

"Hey woah you stay the hell away!"

"There aren't words to express how I feel!"

"Back the hell up!" Naruto started backing away.

"What are you two doing?"

Naruto and Kakashi looked to see Ino standing there with Yamato "Ino. What's up?"

"I'm here to bring you a message from Lady Tsunade, she says to call off your training and return immediately."

"Why? What happened?"

Ino let out a long sigh, her face grim "Hayate Gekko…"

Naruto froze, his eyes wide with shock, the same with Kakashi.

"-has been killed."

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Tsunade wasn't surprised to see Naruto barge into her room "I figured this would come."

Naruto nodded "Ino told me what happened to Hayate-sensei. Who did it?"

"It was two members of the Akatsuki. They'd first destroyed the Fire Temple looking for you, so I sent out the 20 platoons. Hayate's team found them first, and this was the end result."

"...What about Tatsu?"

"He's informing Yugao right now, apparently Hayate told him to give her a message."

Naruto said nothing, he just turned towards the door.

"I don't want you going after them."

"This is Tatsu's fight, not mine. I'm heading back to training after the funeral."

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Yugao froze once she heard about Hayate, then collapsed to her knees in tears, leaving Tatsu to comfort her.

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The day of the funeral came.

Yugao placed some flowers on Hayate's grave.

Ino looked around but couldn't see Tatsu among the crowed "Where is he?"

Naruto shook his head "He wasn't at his apartment when I went there, so I just assumed he left already."

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Tatsu was just wandering the streets, his face showing no emotions, other than emptiness.

Ayame saw him when he was passing Ichiraku "Oh hey Tatsu."

"Hey." he stopped, his voice soft.

"Haven't seen you in awhile, you been busy?"

"Yeah kind of, with Naruto's training and all that."

"Well stop in soon, and tell Naruto I say hi, and Hayate-sensei too."

Tatsu froze.

"That reminds me, we've gotta work out Hayate's tab."

"Actually, Hayate-sensei was…"

"What?" Ayame noticed the look in his eyes ' _Don't tell me…'_

"He was killed in the line of duty."

Ayame immediately wrapped her arms around him "I'm here for you…"

"I know…" he gently freed himself "But I'd really like to be alone right now." and he left.

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After the funeral, Naruto was wandering around ' _It's just so hard to believe.'_

"Naruto."

He looked back "Sasuke."

"I heard what happened to Hayate and rushed back here. How's Tatsu taking it?"

"About was well as you'd expect."

"I see."

"At times like this, you always feel so helpless."

"Yeah. Let me take care of this."

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Nightfall came.

Tatsu opened his door to find Sasuke standing there "Sasuke."

"Hey." Sasuke held up a hand "You wanna talk?"

Tatsu said nothing, he just led him inside.

"You look a little out of it tonight."

"Whatever." Tatsu just sat down in the living room.

"The Akatsuki. They're strong, aren't they?"

"Yeah."

"So what's your plan?"

Nothing.

"If someone like Hayate couldn't handle them then what shot do you think you'd have?"

Nothing.

"I didn't know him very well but he seemed like a good guy."

"Yeah. He was the best."

"Not so hot at things like shogi or women though."

Nothing.

"You know what you're doing?"

Nothing.

"Well I know you of all people wouldn't do anything stupid, frankly we're all lucky in that respect. Who wants to go to their friend's funeral so young?"

Nothing.

"You've done well for yourself, Kazuma would be proud of you."

Tatsu hung his head.

"You're one of the best there is, you've got great talent and a good heart, you're someone the Leaf can depend on in the future."

Nothing.

"But now, Hayate is dead."

Tatsu finally reached his limit and slammed his fist against the wall "Just what are you getting at here?"

"Only the truth."

"Will you shut up already?! All this talking is making me sick! Say whatever you want Sasuke, it doesn't change the fact that I'm so weak and useless that I let my sensei die! I wasn't even good enough to go on that mission because I'm so pathetic!"

"You're wrong."

"What do you want from me Sasuke?"

"You want to know what I want?" Sasuke stood and looked Tatsu straight in the eye "I want you to let it out."

Tatsu lost his glare.

"All of the anger, the sadness, the fear, the frustration, the despair, everything that's building up inside of you. You have to let it go or else it will destroy you."

Tatsu said nothing, he gritted his teeth and clenched his fists.

"It all starts from there, my friend." he walked out and closed the door just as he heard Tatsu start crying uncontrollably "No matter where I might be, I'll always be there for you. Never forget that." and he disappeared with a surge, for it had only been his Thunder Clone.

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Morning came.

Tatsu was sprawled out across the floor, having cried himself dry several hours before, and heard a knock on his door, and when he went to answer it he found Shikamaru standing there "Shika."

"You know what's gotta be done." was all he said.

"Yeah. You got a plan?"

"Yep." he pulled some things out of his bag, including a shogi board and pieces "I've got it all worked out."

"You don't have to do this you know."

"Yeah, I do. It's my fault this happened to Hayate, and I'm gonna fix it."

"Shika, it's not your fault. If it's anyone's, it's mine for not getting there in time."

"I think whoever's fault it is at this point doesn't matter, what matters is that we're both going to fix it."

"Agreed. I've got some things to take care of, we'll head out in a few days."

"Right."

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After a few hours of training, Tatsu stood at the center of a large crater "That's one thing down, just a few more to go."

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Shikamaru wandered through the streets and found Asuma leaning on a pole "Hey."

"You're gonna go through with it aren't you?" asked Asuma.

"Yeah."

"Then I guess it's time I gave you these." he held out a pair of Chakra Blades "They're just like mine, I think you can make some use out of them."

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Later, Tatsu stopped by the Akimichi compound "Hey."

Choji's mother instantly caught him in a hug "Tatsu."

"Morning."

"It must've been so hard on you, seeing Hayate… there aren't any words. You poor poor boy."

"I've got a few. Is Choji here?"

"Hey." then Choji's father Choza came out "Choji's in the hills out back."

"Thanks." he turned around, but didn't move for a moment "For the record, I'd never put Choji in any danger against his will."

"I know you wouldn't."

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Tatsu made his way to the hills in the back ' _Okay Tatsu, no need to sense out Choji's chakra, just follow the growling stomach noises.'_ he wandered around for awhile until he found Choji in a deep hole "I don't know, you think it's deep enough?"

"Tatsu!" Choji perked up, then fell back once his stomach began growling.

"Just saw your folks, brought you a little something." he dropped it into the hole.

Choji caught it and began pigging out "So when are you gonna do it?"

Tatsu was caught off guard by that.

"You are doing it right?"

"Me and Shika are doing it alone, I've got a more important job for you."

"I'm listening." Choji leapt out of the hole "I'm happy to help you out in any way I can."

"I'm glad." Tatsu stared him dead in the eye "I want you to protect my Kings while I'm doing this. I've only ever trusted Lee with this mission."

"I promise."

"Thank you."

"Just be careful."

"Right."

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Ino met Shikamaru outside the Yamanaka Flower Shop "Shikamaru!"

' _Crap.'_ Shikamaru let out a mental groan "Hey."

"You're gonna do it right?"

' _And she knows. Perfect.'_

"I want in."

' _And now Tatsu's gonna have my head on a pike._ Alright."

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Later, Tatsu made his way to Hayate's grave "Forgive me, I know I'm late. I'd ended up losing myself, but a certain someone helped me find it again. I'm about to try something really really stupid, so please, just keep watching over all of us alright?"

"Here."

Tatsu looked back to see Ino holding some flowers "Thanks." he placed them on the grave and bowed his head "Hayate-sensei."

Shikamaru and Ino followed his lead.

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It was the middle of the night.

Tatsu met Shikamaru and Ino at the gate ' _So they came._ This is your last chance to back out, after we leave there's no going back."

"I thought we made it clear, no way we're backing out." Ino told him firmly.

"Fair enough."

"So are you ready?" asked Shikamaru.

"I wouldn't be here if I wasn't."

"Let's go."

"Right."

"Hold it."

Tatsu looked back to see Tsunade standing at the gate "Crap."

"You going somewhere?"

Tatsu turned back and looked her in the eye, unfazed and unwavering "Your mission directive still stands doesn't it? A new team has been assembled, and we're going ahead with the mission."

"Not without my approval you're not. You will be assigned to a troop of _my_ choosing, and only when we have a solid plan of attack in place."

"You think I'd go unprepared? The three of us have already worked out our own strategy-"

"I've heard enough!"

Tatsu didn't flinch, even though Shikamaru and Ino did.

"Hayate is dead, there's only three of you."

"That's where you're wrong. Hayate-sensei is still with us."

"You're after vengeance then aren't you? This isn't like you at all. Are you so eager to die?"

"We're not stupid, we have no intention of running straight to our deaths, and like I said before I never go unprepared. It's just…"

"Well? Just what?"

Tatsu clenched his fists "I wouldn't be able to live with myself, and they volunteered to help of their own free will. That's why we're going."

Tsunade's eyes narrowed "You need to grow up, the shadow of death hangs over us all. Some deaths may be harder to accept than others, but unless you can get past that there can be no future."

Tatsu looked at the sword on his back "Carrying a sword around, it's almost like Hayate-sensei is still with me, guiding my stroke and guiding me to victory, like he's watching over me. I truly feel that. Until I've closed the book on this, I carry his sword at my side."

"Face reality, there's only three of you okay? A full squad has-"

"A full squad has four, then it's alright isn't it?"

Tatsu looked looked to see Asuma standing by the gate "So you came after all Asuma?"

"Team 10 is my squad after all, just put Tatsu in place of Choji and we've got the full squad. Fair enough?"

Tsunade looked rather incredulous "Asuma, what are you-"

"Face the facts, they're gonna go no matter what you say." Asuma put away his cigarettes "I figure I might as well go with them to keep an eye on them and stop them from doing anything stupid."

"He's right you know." Tatsu pointed out "What you say doesn't matter, we're going no matter what."

Tsunade stared for a moment, then sighed "Alright, as you wish then."

"Glad we're on the same page."

Asuma stepped forward "Alright then Team 10, let's move out."

"Right. And Asuma? Thanks."

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Morning came.

Lee's head snapped up "So Tatsu went with Team 10 to find the Akatsuki?"

Tsunade nodded "That's right, and he requested that we wait at least 24 hours before sending backup."

"I see."

"Tell me Lee, how's Naruto's training coming?"

"From what I understand, he's grasping the principles and should only require a little more time to get it."

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"Okay Shikamaru, let's hear this plan of yours." said Asuma.

"Actually I'd like to tweak it a little, now that you're with us." Shikamaru told him.

"No problem, go ahead."

"I'll break it down into pieces with all the variations, so listen carefully everybody and be sure to memorize it."

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Naruto's head snapped up "Wait, so Tatsu went with Shikamaru and the rest and went after the Akatsuki?"

Lee nodded "That's right, they left before sunrise."

"And what did Grandma Tsunade say?"

"That me, Dosu, Zaku and Kin would be sent as a backup squad within 24 hours."

"So I'm not going?"

"She doesn't want to risk it at least until you've mastered this jutsu. Tatsu already has, so the same issue doesn't apply for him."

"Oh." Naruto started forming a Rasengan "Then I guess I've just gotta get to work."

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Shikamaru handed Tatsu a capsule "So that's the plan, use this when you get a chance and hold onto it until then."

Tatsu nodded "Got it, and nice work figuring out all of his from just one encounter."

"Well the other guy's powers are still a mystery, this is the best strategy we've got based on our limited information. Once you've got it clear in your minds run through a mental simulation of it at least three times."

Asuma stood "Okay, let's do it."

"Right. Now the first thing we have to do is pick up their trail."

"So what, you're saying we'd be able to pick up their scent and footprints from the collection office?" Tatsu guessed.

"Well I don't know about that, I'm not sure that's the easiest way."

"Well either way, we should give this a shot."

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The Akatsuki finished sealing the Two-Tails, killing Yugito, and Kakuzu and Hidan decided to go to the Leaf, receiving a warning from Deidara about how powerful a select few were, mainly Naruto, Tatsu and Lee.

Kakuzu decided to take a different route to get to the Leaf in order to avoid walking right into an ambush.

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In the Forest of Dead Trees, a dead lifeless forest in the Land of Fire, Tatsu looked for any signs of tracks, but found nothing "I figured as much, the rain has wiped out any trace of their tracks. What should we do now?"

"We can't do anything until we find them." Shikamaru pointed out "So that's still our first order of business."

"I doubt they'd be stupid enough to actually go back to the collection office, but I've got Hiryu and a bunch of my Shadow Clones watching the place in case they do."

"The loud mouth guy doesn't bother me so much, it's the masked one I'm worried about. I'm betting they'll take a different route, but their destination will remain the same. Whether they're after the bounty on Hayate-sensei or someone else or Kurama inside Naruto, their targeting the Leaf."

"There are lots of approaches to the Leaf Village, so that means we have a lot of territory to cover." Asuma pointed out "How do we find them."

"Let's see…" Shikamaru looked up to see a bird flying overhead "Up there, that's how."

Ino smirked "I'm on it."

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Hidan and Kakuzu were making their way.

Once possessing a bird with her Mind Transfer Jutsu, Ino quickly tracked them down ' _There they are, heading straight for the Leaf just like we thought.'_

Then Kakuzu suddenly extended his arm and made a grab for Bird-Ino, intent on strangling her to death.

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Ino's eyes shot open "Woah…"

"You alright?" asked Tatsu.

"Yeah, but that was way too close."

"Did they spot you?" asked Shikamaru.

I think we're okay, they're taking a different route just as we thought. We'll run into them if we head northeast, it'll take about 10 minutes."

"Then let's move." Tatsu stood.

"Right."

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Kakuzu retracted his arm after letting the bird go ' _Was I imagining it?'_

"What the hell was that about?" asked Hidan.

"It was nothing, nothing at all."

"Well then let's keep moving."

"Right." they kept walking for about 10 to 15 minutes until they noticed a shadow suddenly creeping up behind them "Hidan."

"I know." they dodged, then deflected some kunai, only to see paper bombs attached "What?"

"Paper bomb!" Kakuzu's fist turned black as he caught it, only to be caught in the explosion.

Hidan escaped, the chain attached to his scythe being broken "Kakuzu!"

"I hardened my arm, I'm fine!" Kakuzu emerged unharmed "Just watch out for the shadows."

"Right." they dodged the shadows "We won't fall for that trick again."

"Hidan, above you!"

"What?" Hidan looked up to see Shikamaru fire off his chakra blades with paper bombs attached to them.

"More paper bombs, Hidan look out!" they both dodged, only for the bombs to be duds.

' _It didn't detonate.'_ then Hidan realized something.

"We've been had."

' _Dammit!'_

Shikamaru leapt down and smirked "Shadow Possession Shuriken Jutsu, achieved."

' _I can't move!_ Little jerk, how did you do it when I dodged your shadow?"

"What I threw at you were chakra blades, not only do they absorb the chakra nature of whoever wields them but they complement and augment his jutsu."

"What the hell is this kid talking about Kakuzu?"

"Will you shut up you idiot?" Kakuzu growled.

Shikamaru continued, ignoring them "In short, having absorbed the user's chakra the chakra blades become an extension of his jutsu. So you see I wasn't trying to hit you, I was aiming for your shadows the whole time."

' _So these paper bombs are fakes, just ordinary pieces of paper. Now I see, the first set of paper bombs on kunai knives were meant to mislead us to make sure we would try and elude the second set attached to chakra blades. He then distracted us again by drawing our attention to the ground with his shadow play so we wouldn't notice his attack from above until the last minute, by allowing us no time to think he was able to pierce our shadows and paralyze us. Quite the little tactician, this one.'_

"Alright then, it's time to finish this."

"Hey what's wrong with you, why are you so quiet all of a sudden?" Hidan demanded "What the hell were you thinking letting yourself get caught too huh? Hey you know what I think, things aren't looking too good for us that's what I think!"

"Yeah you're right, as a matter of fact by my calculations it's all over for you to right about now." Shikamaru formed a hand seal and his shadow extended and attached itself to Hidan's, then the shadow picked up the chakra blade.

"Hey what's going on now, what the hell are you doing?"

"I just want to get it right, don't want to make the same mistake as last time. I need to be sure not to mess up our order of attack again, this time I'm gonna see to it that we finish this once and for all." controlling Hidan's movements, Shikamaru began backing up.

Under Shikamaru's control, Hidan backed up and grabbed his triple-bladed scythe "I never forget a face kid, someday I'm gonna find you and I'm gonna kill you."

Shikamaru began running in a sideways direction, forcing Hidan to do the same "Oh man, you really don't get it do you?"

Hidan found himself forced to attack Kakuzu while he was paralyzed "Kakuzu, duck!"

With one swift movement, Kakuzu's arm shot out of the ground and grabbed the chakra blade, freeing him and allowing him to duck just in the nick of time, surprising everyone in the Leaf group as it reattached itself to his body ' _There.'_

' _I never expected his arm to function independently from his body.'_ Shikamaru noted ' _But how, and when did he-? Wait, that's when he did it. When I attacked him with the paper bombs he must've hidden his arm in the ground under the cover of the smoke. It's such a drag the way each of the Akatsuki has unique powers.'_

"I guess it's not quite all over yet is it? As you can plainly see my abilities are countless, you'd be wise to retreat and plan your next move. That is, if you're smart unlike my partner here. Just remember, all the battle plans you make mean nothing when the situation on the ground doesn't go as calculated."

Then Hidan thought of something "Kakuzu! What did you mean "Unlike my partner here", huh?!"

"Just what I said you idiot."

Then Hidan suddenly charged forward, swinging his scythe at Kakuzu against his will, due to being controlled by Shikamaru "I can't control my body! Do something Kakuzu, do something!"

"What's wrong with you?"

Shikamaru gave a nod ' _Now Asuma, now!'_

" **Flying Swallow!"** Asuma charged downwards from above, slamming down on Kakuzu with his chakra blades. He then retreated back to join Shikamaru "So what do you think's going on?"

"I knew it, it's just like Tatsu said before. He's got some sort of jutsu that allows him to harden his body, that's his special ability."

When the dust settled, Kakuzu emerged unharmed, his skin suddenly turned black but slowly returning to normal "Good eye. Yes it's true, physical attacks are virtually useless against me."

' _I thought I'd made allowances for the extent of their powers but not this, if we can't use a direct attack then what can we do?'_

Kakuzu looked over at Asuma ' _So that's the other member of the Guardian Shinobi 12. Note to self, be sure to cash him in later.'_

Hidan let out a maniacal laugh "Be afraid, be very afraid you ignorant heathens! Kakuzu enough chit chat, let's counterattack. Come on, hurry up and undo this idiotic jutsu already."

"Right." then Kakuzu suddenly cried out in pain, much to the shock of everyone, and he looked back to see Tatsu stabbing him in the heart, the Dragon Blade emitting a large amount of lightning style chakra "But-But how? I didn't even sense you approach…"

Tatsu smirked as he drove the Dragon Blade deeper "I would say I'm sorry, but the thing is that I'm really not."

"Hold on a minute Tatsu, how'd you get behind him?" asked Shikamaru.

"I saw everything, including that jutsu you were using to harden your skin. Judging by the hand signs you weaved, I figured it was some sort of earth style jutsu."

"You were able to read and determine my signs so quickly." Kakuzu noted "And that sword you carry. Wait, that's it. You're Tatsu Kamikaze, that Leaf brat carrying the Dragon Blade."

"Earth is inferior to Lightning, not your lucky day, especially since you two scumsuckers were the ones who killed my sensei. You're a dead man walking, and your partner is next."

"Leave it to you Tatsu." then Shikamaru hunched over slightly.

"You at your limit Shika?" Tatsu subtly put his capsule away and retracted the Dragon Blade, causing Kakuzu to fall to the ground "And now…" he summoned a Shadow Clone and began forming a Rasengan.

"Sucker punch to the heart?" Hidan sounded incredulous "You're through? I can't believe it, just like that?!"

Tatsu held up his Elemental Rasengan "That's right you filthy swine, and now you're next."

' _Dammit, I still can't move!'_

"This ends now! This is for Hayate! **Wind Style: Rasengan!"** Tatsu charged in.

That is, before Kakuzu suddenly kicked him through several trees "Sorry, but it's not over just yet."

Hidan snickered "And after all that tough talk, well who's done for now huh?"

"F*ck you." Tatsu spat out some blood ' _What the hell is going on? I know I got him right in the heart, but it's like I didn't hit him at all.'_

"Alright, let's get this over with shall we?"

"That's the plan." Kakuzu ripped off his Akatsuki cloak, revealing his true body, held together by several stitched thick black strings, along with four masks on his back, one of which was destroyed. Then Kakuzu's back opened up, revealing four creatures from the masks that burst out of his body.

Shikamaru realized his Shadow Possession had reached its limit "Dammit, my Shadow Possession's had it."

"Okay, let's recap." Tatsu muttered "This guy has surpassed Kimimaro for weirdest ability I've ever seen, he's spewed four gigantic monsters out of his back, and he's still not dead after I stabbed him with Genryu-lightning chakra. So the question here is, what the f*ck?"

Shikamaru withdrew his shadow "Who knows? After going head to head with these guys, there's nothing that'll surprise me anymore."

Hidan stretched somewhat "There that's more like it, I can finally move again."

Tatsu finally stood up again ' _What the hell are those things though?'_

"Now then, shall we let the slaughter begin?"

Kakuzu nodded "Oh yes."

"Look Lord Jashin, behold your servant! I give myself body and soul to the carnage to come! In your name I will rip their guts out!""

Then one of Kakuzu's creatures, the one with the broken mask, suddenly collapsed and dissolved into a puddle of goo.

"Hey Kakuzu, what the hell was that? You put on this big show and then one of them drops dead before we even get started? Come on, that's pretty lame if you ask me!"

' _One of the creatures that emerged from the big guy's body collapsed.'_ Tatsu noted ' _That must be the one I stabbed with the Dragon Blade just now. If my hunch is right, and it usually is, then we might actually be onto something here.'_

"Hidan just stay back, I've got this." Kakuzu told him.

"No way!" Hidan barked "No way in hell I'm staying out, I want in on this action! I'm sick of watching us get pushed around by these losers! So then, let's go with the usual."

"Right." Kakuzu formed a hand seal.

"Now then, let's begin!" Hidan charged in with his triple-bladed scythe.

' _He's fast!'_ Tatsu drew the Dragon Blade and began clashing with him, being pushed back by the relentless attacks.

Then Kakuzu sent one of his monsters behind Hidan.

' _Crap.'_

" **Wind Style: Pressure Damage!"** taking advantage of Hidan's immortality, Kakuzu's mask hit Tatsu dead on with a tornado-like blast, sending him flying through several trees.

Asuma and the rest braced themselves "Guys, brace yourselves!" he got behind Shikamaru right before they got hit by the shockwave "Tatsu! _That guy shot through his own teammate, probably to take advantage of his partner's immortality.'_

"Asuma-sensei! Shikamaru!" Ino rushed down to join them.

"Ino, be sure not to let your guard down."

"Right."

" **Lightning Style: False Darkness!"** Kakuzu unleashed a blast of lightning from the mouth of one of the creatures in the form of a lightning spear that shot towards them.

"The hell you will!" Tatsu suddenly appeared in front of Asuma and the others, his gi torn about halfway revealing his bare chest, and managed to deflect the lightning with his bare hands, but just barely "Okay, that was fun."

"Are you alright Tatsu?" asked Ino.

"I'm still standing, what about you guys?"

"We're all fine."

"Good. _These two are way stronger than I thought they'd be, especially the one with the mask and those weird things. Normally someone can't use such high level jutsu unless they're compatible with their own chakra natures, and yet the masked guy has already displayed earth himself, and wind and lightning from those creatures. And if the patterns on the mask are anything to go by, the one I destroyed was water and the last one should be fire. So the question is, what the hell is going on and how can he use all five elements? I myself would only be able to use three without the power of the Genryu or being able to copy jutsu like Sasuke or Kakashi can with the Sharingan, so how does this guy do it?'_

Then Hidan stepped up "That was very impressive, you're the first one who's ever survived that little one-two combination of ours Tatsu Kamikaze."

"So you actually know my name?"

"Kakuzu's been idling your picture in the Bingo Book for months, apparently you're an up and coming A-rank he's hoping to get some huge bounty for."

"Is that right?"

"You saw through the jutsu with such ease, but what about this next one?" Kakuzu formed a hand seal as the red masked creature inched forward and opened its mask.

"Well f*ck. Guys, just stand back and let me handle this."

" **Fire Style: Searing Migraine!"** Kakuzu unleashed a massive blast of fire from the creature's mouth.

' _Yeah, knowing my luck that seems about right. I doubt my water style is good enough to stop that, so I guess option B should come into play.'_ Tatsu formed several hand seals " **Earth Style: Great Mud Wall!"** he slammed his hands into the ground and summon a large wall made of earth and rock.

The fire slammed into it and created a scorching explosion.

Tatsu found himself skidding back, but he held his ground "Shika! Ino! Asuma! You guys alright?"

"We're fine!" Asuma called.

"Good, cause I'm screwed." Tatsu drew the Dragon Blade just in time to fend off Hidan's attacks with his scythe, being forced on the defensive, going up one of the scorched trees.

Hidan eventually broke away after dodging a few thrusts from the sword "Boy, you really are good."

"I learned from the man you killed, now I'm going to avenge him."

Asuma and the rest joined up with him "Tatsu, you alright?"

"Don't worry about me, I'm fine. _Problem is, I'm probably gonna have to rely on my new jutsu if I want any hope in hell of taking these guys out. The only thing about that is that it takes up way too much chakra to use recklessly. I can't let this drag on.'_

"They're good, they work seamlessly together." Ino noted.

"Yeah but I stabbed him right in the heart with lightning chakra from a Genryu, by all rights he should be dead already, but instead I took down one of those weird creatures that sprang up from his back. My best guess is that it died in place of him."

"Probably, just look at the way he dodged my Shadow Possession Shuriken." Shikamaru pointed out "He detached his arm with what looked like a beating heart, and it was moving all on its own."

"So what does that mean?"

"Best guess? Those dark figures with him, not to mention the masked guy himself, all have separate hearts, and yet all five of them were his."

"One less though, thanks to my attack from earlier. So to take him out for good, we've gotta destroy his other four hearts."

"Fraid so."

"Good eye once again." Kakuzu noted "Each of these hearts belonged to a shinobi that I faced in battle and got the better of. They can easily be replenished, with your hearts for example."

Tatsu clenched his fists ' _Now it makes sense, he's tapping into the separate chakra natures of each of the stolen hearts, allowing him to incorporate their chakra natures.'_

Then Hidan stepped up "Oh by the way, you Leaf ninja, you bury your dead or what? It'll be a real hassle if you do, knowing Kakuzu he'll totally want us to go digging for that cash cow of his. He was already a downer though. Seriously, that guy with the sword went down like it was nothing. Where the hell is the fun in that?"

"Big talk coming from the man who got his head chopped off." Kakuzu pointed out.

"Kakuzu, shut the bloody f*ck up!" then he turned back to the Leaf group "So anyway, I know you're looking for revenge but I think you're out of your league here. You guys are just pups and that bearded guy is a chump, and the chump in the front must've been his student or something right? That's what you said isn't it? Well with a loser like that guy teaching you, you're pretty much screwed."

"Don't you DARE insult Hayate-sensei." Tatsu's voice was a low snarl, filled with malice and hatred.

"Oh, a loving bond between teacher and student. What a load."

"That's strike 2."

"What, you're really that bent out of shape over a worthless piece of crap like that?"

"YOU SON OF A-" Tatsu was about to charge forward in a rage.

That is, before Asuma caught him in a full nelson "Tatsu stop, don't egg you on. Besides, you're not the only one who's out for revenge here."

Tatsu paused, trying to calm himself.

"Don't forget that they killed Chiriku, he was like a brother to me. I felt for him what you feel for Naruto, Sasuke and Lee, but I'm not allowing myself to be lost in my anger. That's not what Hayate would want."

Tatsu took in a long deep sigh "Sorry. Oh and Asuma, you wanna take a shot?"

"I wouldn't be against it."

"Good, because he's right in front of us." Tatsu leapt back.

Asuma looked and saw Kakuzu right in front of him ' _Tatsu, you little-!'_ he thrusted his chakra blades forward.

Kakuzu caught them with ease, and pummeled Asuma lightly before sending him tumbling back into a tree and kicking him right through it.

"Asuma!" Tatsu attempted to rush to his aid.

Hidan appeared in front of him "Oh no you don't." he went on the offensive.

Tatsu ran away from him up a tree, dodging all of his attacks as well as attacks from Kakuzu's masks.

"Gotcha!" Hidan dropped down on him.

Tatsu dodged Hidan's attack, but found himself cornered by a combination attack from the three masks, though he managed to escape ' _At this rate…'_

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Kakuzu dragged Asuma out of the tree and activated his Iron Skin jutsu "Time to die."

" **Water Style: Raging Waves!"**

Kakuzu looked to see Ino fire off a blast of water and dodged it "Little brat." then he noticed Shikamaru trying to capture him by his shadow and sent his lightning mask after him.

' _Dammit!'_ Shikamaru was forced on the evasive.

' _Persistent brat.'_

"Shikamaru!" Ino cried out.

Kakuzu caught her in a chokehold with his extending arms, then did the same to Asuma and began strangling the life out of them "Pathetic little worms, just die."

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' _Dammit!'_ Tatsu formed a hand seal and rushed behind a tree trunk only to get bombarded with small fireballs, leaving him lying on the ground.

"So long, nice knowing ya!" Hidan slashed through Tatsu with his triple-bladed scythe.

Tatsu disappeared in a puff of smoke, revealing that it'd only been a Shadow Clone.

"HUH?!"

' _Perfect!'_ the real Tatsu took off running on the ground "Shika, now!"

"Right!" Shikamaru summoned a scroll, formed a hand seal, and stomped his foot down on it, revealing a large pool of water. He then dodged a blast of lightning from one of Kakuzu's hearts, unintentionally using the water as a conductor.

' _Dammit!'_ Kakuzu was electrocuted and cried out in pain.

"There!" Shikamaru fired a kunai with a paper bomb attached.

" **Water Style: Water Wall!"** Kakuzu dropped Ino and Asuma and formed a Water Wall, protecting him from the explosion.

"Tatsu!"

"Right!" Tatsu charged in and carried Ino to safety.

Shikamaru carried Asuma to meet up with them.

"Nice plan."

"Had to think fast on the fly."

"Only you could that fast." then he turned to Ino and Asuma "You guys alright?"

Ino coughed slightly "Yeah, more or less."

Hidan leapt down to join Kakuzu "That was pitiful, what happened there buddy?"

"You should talk, I wasn't the one who fell for a Shadow Clone."

"Oh yeah right, you saw that?"

"So Shika, what's the plan from here?" asked Tatsu.

"First things first, we have to get them on their own." explained Shikamaru "We've gotta tackle them individually."

"Agreed."

"Once their combo attacks are off the table we can focus on destroying the big guy's last four hearts."

"Alright, but for that to work one of us is gonna have to get rid of loudmouth mc scumf*cker over there. That rules me out, the one with the mask is clearly the stronger of the two and you've gotta stay to take him out. With all five elements at his disposal, you're the only one who can take him down. Asuma is the strongest aside from you so you'll need him to back me up, and Ino going is too risky since her water style isn't effective enough to hit him at mid or long range and her Mind Transfer Jutsu is way too risky. I'm gonna do it, I'll get him with my Shadow Possession Jutsu and then head off with him."

"You sure about this? How do you plan on trapping him?"

"What do you think I was doing while you were finishing up that new jutsu of yours?"

"Fair enough, but we'll still need some kind of diversion."

"Well I know you don't wanna risk Ino and Asuma's combat style involves head on attacks and that's definitely the wrong way to go here." he stood "I'll get ahold of him, you guys can stay out of it. And as for the diversion, that'll be me. I've got this."

"You sure?"

"Very. You want to avenge Hayate and so do I, so you take the masked guy out while I get the other one."

"...Alright, if you want it so badly then I'll trust you." he handed Shikamaru something "Here, you'll need it."

"Right."

"Shikamaru." Asuma handed him his lighter "For good luck."

"Thanks." Shikamaru stepped forward and thrusted forward his shadow.

"Not that again." Hidan dodged easily, the same with Kakuzu "Are you scared of my scythe and abilities?"

Asuma quickly jumped into the fray to prevent Kakuzu from coming to Hidan's aid, engaging him in hand to hand combat "You're dealing with me right now."

"I don't think so!" Hidan began dodging Shikamaru's shadows "A covert attack from a distance? How pathetic!" he went up a tree to dodge.

"Think so?" Shikamaru had his shadow throw one of his chakra blades.

Hidan leapt off and dodged it ' _He threw the blade with his shadow?'_

Shikamaru did so again.

Unable to dodge it in mid-air by himself, Hidan wedged his scythe into the tree and jumped off of it, managing to dodge the blade just in time "You wish kiddo, as long as you watch the shadows this jutsu's worth-"

"Gotcha!" Shikamaru ran across the tree and thrusted a fist forward.

Hidan caught it.

Shikamaru retreated, using his Shadow Possession to connect their shadows due to making direct contact "Now who's pathetic? I don't hide in the shadows, I become them!" they both landed on the ground "Shadow Possession Jutsu, complete."

"You stupid little…"

"Shikamaru, get going!" Asuma blocked several punches by Kakuzu "Leave the rest to us, just do what you have to do!"

"Right." Shikamaru forced Hidan to drop his scythe "Come on pal, we're gonna go for a little stroll." and they both ran off, Hidan unwillingly."

' _Shikamaru, we're counting on you.'_

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Hidan wasn't keen on being forced to follow "Where the hell are we going kid? Splitting up me and Kakuzu isn't gonna save you! Damn you!"

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Kakuzu had his masks close in on Tatsu and Asuma "Was it wise for the kid to go alone? He's underestimated Hidan. He did show a lot of promise though, he would've commanded quite a bounty down the line but today that boy dies. However, you were correct about one thing. I am strong." black threads burst from his arms in several locations "The gap between our respective battle experience is vast. Those headbands you are all wearing remind me of the very first Leaf shinobi I ever did battle with… the First Hokage."

"...How old are you?" Tatsu asked after a moment ' _Well it's official, he's definitely the weirdest guy I've ever fought._ So what then, does that mean you really are immortal like your partner?"

"No, there's no such thing in this world. I've just managed to prolong my life by stealing and stocking up on others' hearts before mine can stop from old age."

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Shikamaru finished setting up various kunai, wires and paper bombs throughout the forest, effectively trapping Hidan ' _That should do it.'_

"You think I'm gonna run?" Hidan looked down and saw the Shadow Possession wear off "Your shadow jutsu, it lasts about 5 minutes as I recall, and it's just the two of us now. You made this one easy for me boy!" he pulled out his retractable spear and charged forward like the maniac he was, apparently cutting Shikamaru's cheek.

Shikamaru fell back, the cut on his cheek now dripping with blood.

Hidan licked the blood on his spear.

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Tatsu looked at the masks and saw something very unsettling ' _The Fire and Wind masks, they're merging into one.'_

"If you're counting the original, my body holds up to 5 hearts." Kakuzu told him "Thanks to you though, I'm now in need of a replacement. That's why I'll be taking yours boy."

"Just come and try it you pathetic old fossil. _Come on already Shika, I'd really love for that plan of yours to come through already.'_

"If you insist." Kakuzu formed a hand seal.

' _Over there!'_ Tatsu shoved Asuma out of the way and dodged a False Darkness by the Lightning mask from behind, causing it to blast a hole through the scorch (fire and wind combined) mask.

However, the mask quickly regenerated and fired a combined fire and wind blast.

" **Water Style: Water Whip!"** Tatsu formed a whip made of chakra-infused water and pulled himself towards a tree and out of the way of the blast, then leapt out of the way of the second blast and hid behind a tree ' _He must be trying to force me out into the opening so he can try and shoot me down.'_

"You call that hiding?" Kakuzu had the heart fire a blast of wind, shooting right through the tree several times over.

Tatsu tried to dodge by going up, only to be hit by a fireball, but then he disappeared and was replaced by a log.

' _A Substitution jutsu._ You did well this time boy, but do you have the courage to show yourself and stand before us like a man?"

"What do you think? **Earth Style: Headhunter Jutsu!"** Tatsu pulled the Lightning mask down into the ground, then burst out into the open and charged at the scorch mask with a barrage of slashes.

The masks opened their mouths.

' _Not again, and I'm not as proficient as people like Dosu or Naruto.'_

The masks fired off a combined fire and wind blast.

" **Water Style: Supreme Tsunami!"** Tatsu leapt back and slammed his hands together, forming a massive barrier of water, only for it to be evaporated into steam ' _Dammit, I guess my water style alone isn't enough to put out fire enhanced by wind style.'_

"Got you!" Kakuzu thrusted his threads out from atop a tree and they latched onto Tatsu's chest and bound his arms and legs, allowing him to throw Tatsu around. Then he attempted to use his threads to bore a hole into Tatsu's chest to take his heart and pounced on him "You took your eyes off of me, an unfortunate distraction. And now, your heart is mine."

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Hidan let out a maniacal laughter and stabbed himself in the hand, causing it to drip with blood, which he then used to form the diagram on the ground "The preparations are complete! Oh how I've been waiting for this! DIE!" and he stabbed himself straight through the heart, relishing in the pain "How about that? Pain can be so addicting can't it?"

"D-Dammit…" Shikamaru collapsed forward, Asuma's lighter falling from his pocket.

"How worthless, Jashin must be disappointed that it's already over. Well then, I'm sure Kakuzu must be wrapping things up now too." he was wrong.

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Kakuzu suddenly clutched his chest in pain "Wh… What… did you do?"

Tatsu breathed a sigh ' _I really owe you one Shika, looks like you pulled it off just in the nick of time.'_

"But… But how?"

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The forest went quiet.

Hidan's skin reverted back to normal "Time to go."

"You sure about that?"

Hidan turned just in time for Shikamaru to slash at his neck, destroying his spear, knocking off his headband and sending him to the ground, but his head didn't come off.

' _Not deep enough!'_ Shikamaru then activated his Shadow Strangle Jutsu and trapped Hidan with it.

"Damn you… Why are you still alive?! You shouldn't be standing… how?!"

"It's simple, I fooled you. You thought you killed me, but you were dead wrong." he wiped the blood from his cheek, revealing no cut "And all that blood dripping off your weapon, it isn't even mine. That's right, it's your partner's blood."

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Kakuzu gripped his chest even tighter "It's not… possible…"

Tatsu smirked "That's where you're wrong. You know that ritual of your partner's? Sorry to tell you this, but- Oh wait, no I'm not. He used _your_ blood for it. You see, Shika knew that the scumf*cker's powers utilized the blood of his opponent so he planted blood capsules in advance just to be on the safe side."

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"What the hell are you saying?" Hidan demanded.

"It could've been anybody, if an opportunity ever presented itself then one of us had to get a sample from Kakuzu." explained Shikamaru "See, this capsule came in quite handy."

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Kakuzu collapsed to the ground "It can't be… when could you possible have had the chance?"

Tatsu sat up "When I stabbed you through with the Dragon Blade back before you unleashed your creepers, at that exact moment I took the opportunity to take a small sample of your blood."

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"That's when I nabbed it." Shikamaru continued "My job was to trap you. Anyway, that's how our little strategy played out."

"You little rat…" Hidan snarled.

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"No way… that lousy kid… planned that far ahead?" Kakuzu got out.

Tatsu ripped the threads out of his chest "That's about the size of it. You should've been more careful, this time you misunderstood your opponent. My master Hayate Gekko gave his life to leave behind that information, there's no way he of all people was going to let it go to waste. You people take hundreds of innocent lives without hesitation, there's no way you could ever understand the depth of what I feel."

Kakuzu fell still and silent.

"Good riddance, burn in hell you pathetic old relic."

Ino and Asuma rushed over "Tatsu, are you alright?"

"Somehow, but I'll be fine so don't worry." he untangled himself from Kakuzu's threads ' _I still can't believe he invaded my body that much in such a short amount of time, if Shika and I had taken any longer then I most likely wouldn't be here right now.'_

"Tatsu, what about that?" Ino looked at the wound at his chest "Here, let me treat you with my medical ninjutsu."

"I told you I'm fine, and besides that'd have to wait anyway. Get ready guys, those last two creepers are coming back for more."

Asuma stepped up and put away his trench knives "Stand back guys, I've got this." he got into a stance, the spirit of the Thousand-Armed Kannon appearing behind him ' _This one's for you Chiriku._ **Raigo: Thousand Hand Strike!"** he launched a barrage of one thousand fists, quickly subduing them.

"Alright Asuma, way to go."

Asuma looked to see threads shooting towards him, but he quickly retreated ' _Then again, Chiriku always was better at it than me.'_

"Good try Asuma, points for effort."

Then the fire/wind mask creature appeared and shot out a blast of fire.

"Dammit!" Tatsu grabbed Ino and shot out of the path of fire.

The lightning mask suddenly absorbed itself into Kakuzu's body.

"Okay then, that's bad. Ino, get ready."

Within a moment, Kakuzu stood once more "Not quite yet." he then absorbed the fire and wind creature into his body, giving him a more monstrous form.

"Now his primary body is becoming a monster too. _And I thought he couldn't get any more ugly or disturbing.'_

"Not one of my hearts, but two. Hasn't happened to me in a very long while."

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Shikamaru was unnerved ' _This isn't good, I've got a bad feeling about this.'_

Hidan let out a menacing chuckle "You know I'm not all that bright but even I can see through you. You've used it so many times now, after seeing you do it so much any idiot could figure out the ins and outs of your jutsu."

"What did you say?"

"I can tell your jutsu isn't as strong as it was before, it hasn't even been 5 minutes and I can already move again." resisting the jutsu, Hidan reached for his retractable spear "The thing is, I realized the power and the duration of your little jutsu gradually weakens each and every time you use it. Pathetic kid, the longer you use the jutsu the more feeble it gets until you have nothing left. I'd even venture to guess you're approaching the limit of your chakra, ain't that right?"

Shikamaru fell to one knee.

Hidan slowly ventured towards him and raised his spear.

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"This time, there's no escape." Kakuzu got into a stance.

"Asuma, Ino, get ready." Tatsu found himself bound by threads, along with Ino and Asuma ' _He's so much faster than before, and now we can't even defend ourselves. This is bad.'_

"Boy, I had intended to replace the hearts I lost with yours, but I've changed my mind. After all, I can find more hearts anytime I please." Kakuzu summoned the fire and wind masks out from the threads "Now die!" he unleashed a fire blast and a wind blast, enhancing the fire blast immensely.

' _This is bad!'_

" **Wind Style: Leaf Dragon God!"**

" **Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!"**

" **Hurricane Dragon Jutsu!"** a massive water and wind dragon appeared and batted away the enhanced fire vortex, both attacks disappearing in a massive cloud of steam.

From within the steam, four figures appeared "Sorry we're late Tatsu, but better late than never right?" the steam cleared.

Tatsu breathed a sigh of relief "Lee, Dosu, Kin." then he frowned when he saw the last of the four "Ayame?"

Sure enough, Ayame stood between Dosu and Lee, clan in a chunin vest "What's the matter Tatsu? You disappointed?"

"More like pissed. What are you doing here? You know how I feel about you fighting."

"And you know how Kazuma would feel if anything would happen to you. I promised him I'd look after you."

"And I promised him I'd protect you."

"Enough!" Lee finally shut them both up "Look, Ayame worked it out with Lady Hokage and she's coming out of retirement and becoming a kunoichi again."

"What?"

"Look Tatsu, I know you want to keep your promise to your brother, but you can't just coop her up and expect her to do nothing."

"I know, but…"

Ayame let out a sigh "I understand Tatsu, believe me I do, but this is what I want. Besides, I'm not going back to the ANBU. That emotionless lifestyle doesn't agree with me."

"So what then? Jonin?"

"No, I'm gonna take my time earning that title back. For now, I'm a chunin."

"Good to know, the last thing I need is to go to my brother's grave and tell him that I let you go out on an S-rank mission and get slaughtered. Anyway, thanks for that save guys."

"Anything for you, though you look like you've seen better days. I've never seen you so disheveled."

"One of those weeks, my sensei gets killed and I'm fighting two freaks of nature working for the Akatsuki."

"Where's Shikamaru?" asked Dosu "I thought he came with you."

"He's off dealing with the other guy on his own back in the forest. Dosu, Kin, you guys are a combat specialist/sensor type and medic so you head over to back him up. Knowing the guy he's up against, there's a pretty good chance he'll need you."

"Right." and they both headed off.

"Okay, that leaves this guy."

Kakuzu smirked "Ragtag bunch of misfits, you people are nothing but potential heart replacements for me."

Tatsu sheathed the Dragon Blade and stepped forward "Alright ugly, from here on out I'm doing a solo act."

"Tatsu, look at what this guy did to you before we got here. You're strong but even you can't win in a straight up fight." then Ayame felt realization hit her "Wait, don't tell me… you've perfected it?"

"Sorry but no, unfortunately it only works about ⅔ of the time. But you just watch, I've come a long way from that annoying little brat I was when we first met." he stepped up and formed a certain hand seal "Just stand back and watch the show, but feel free to cover me if I end up in any trouble."

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With his typical maniacal laughter, Hidan raised his spear and inched forward "Hate to break it to you, but I can still move."

"Dammit!" Shikamaru swore.

"If only you believed in Jashin then you'd still have a chance, he could step in and save you right now. It might not be too late to convert though, to change your ways." then he gave a wicked smirk "Nah just kidding, you're dead kid!" he thrusted the spear forward.

Shikamaru stopped him by holding out a hand "Thanks anyway, but I can save myself."

Hidan found himself caught by the wires and shadows throughout the area "What the hell?!"

" **Shadow Pull Jutsu!"** Shikamaru closed his fist, summoning all of the paper bombs in the area together at once and binding Hidan with them.

"You… You little…"

"Well well, I guess I'm not quite out of chakra after all. Go figure, am I right?"

"You're kidding right?"

Shikamaru threw a kunai at his clan's crest on the ground a little ways away.

"Kid, what the hell are you doing?!"

"See for yourself." the ground broke apart from the crest on the ground to where Hidan was trapped, leaving a deep gaping hole directly underneath him.

"What?!" Hidan looked down at the deep gaping hole "What is this?! When the hell did you set this up?!"

"A while ago, way before we caught up with you and your partner."

' _No way! He didn't just randomly separate me and Kakuzu, he lured me here deliberately, which means this was all part of his calculations!'_

"When you curse someone, you dig your own grave. You know why, don't you pal?"

"Enlighten me!"

Shikamaru held up Asuma's lighter "If you curse someone and take them out then you'll also be defeated in retribution, and that's why you end up digging your own grave. I may not have known Hayate very well but Tatsu's a good friend of mine and he considered Hayate to be like a father to him, and he entrusted me with taking you out, so I can't just let you keep living and running around free." he fired up the lighter "That's your grave you're hanging over."

Despite the situation, Hidan let out a maniacal laughter "I won't die, even if you dismember my body and bury the pieces 6 feet deep I'll just chew my way out and come seeking your throat!"

"Is that right?" Shikamaru looked off to the side.

Hidan looked and noticed something "What the- deer?"

"These woods are a special place in the Land of Fire, only members of my clan are allowed in here. Anyone else is forbidden. Once you set foot in here, we can watch you for eternity." then he felt a hand touch his shoulder, and looked to see Hayate's spirit beside him "Hayate…"

"You did well here Shikamaru, now I entrust my mission to you. Take care of Tatsu for me, keep him out of trouble." then he disappeared.

' _Sure thing._ It's the Will of Fire, to protect our village. That's what makes us different." and with that, he tossed Asuma's lighter towards Hidan, igniting the paper bombs and unleashing a fiery explosion.

It was over.

Shikamaru had won.

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Tatsu formed a hand seal " **Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** he summoned two clones "Alright, you guys know what to do." and the two clones rushed forward.

' _A simple head on attack using Shadow Clones? He must be getting desperate.'_ Kakuzu wiped both clones out with ease "Shadow Clones, really now? You'll never win that way."

' _Based on his new assault speed and battle style, I'm going to need three Shadow Clones for the diversion itself alone.'_ Tatsu formed a hand seal " **Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** he summoned three clones.

' _Another set of Shadow Clones?'_

Using two of the clones, Tatsu began forming an Elemental Rasengan ' _I don't have any time to waste on secondary natures, I've gotta go for the big one or else all of this will have been in vain.'_

' _Interesting, now what?'_

The jutsu was completed, emitting a massive amount of chakra.

' _What is that jutsu? I can't let it hit me or I'll be finished.'_

Summoning a massive gust of wind, Tatsu held up his new advanced jutsu " **Wind Style: Rasenshuriken!"**

' _That jutsu… he must have been saving it to act as some sort of trump card.'_

Tatsu sent his Shadow Clones to the front "Alright, here we go. Let's finish this!" he sent the clones to charge forward as he himself turned to the others "Everybody stand back, if you get caught by this jutsu then you will die." and he charged.

' _So this is the power of the boy who's tamed the Genryu themselves, well the jutsu certainly befits the beasts I suppose.'_

Tatsu leapt into the air with the Rasenshuriken while the clones charged at Kakuzu from different angles.

Kakuzu thrusted his threads out and opened his fire and wind masks, dissipating the clones with ease.

"Now!" Tatsu charged from behind with the Rasenshuriken.

' _What?!'_

"Gotcha!" Tatsu aimed the Rasenshuriken directly at Kakuzu's chest, only for it to dissipate at the last second ' _Dammit, it failed.'_ he leapt away.

Kakuzu caught him by the threads and pulled him towards him.

' _He really is full of surprises.'_ Asuma charged forward "Ino!"

"Right!" Ino formed a hand seal " **Water Style: Water Whip!"** she shot a whip out of her hand.

"Your heart belongs to me now." Kakuzu ducked, causing the whip to only go through the threads in his back.

" **Lightning Style: Jade Thunder!"** channeling lightning into his trench knives, Asuma brought them down and severed the threads, freeing Tatsu from Kakuzu's grasp and allowing Asuma to get him to safety.

Kakuzu then ducked out of the way of Ino's Water Whip until it dissipated ' _Dammit, he got away again.'_

"You alright Tatsu?"

"Yeah…" Tatsu let out a heavy sigh "Sorry guys, I guess I blew it."

"I'm kind of surprised though, when you said the technique was called Rasenshuriken I figured you'd try to throw it or something. I never expected you to try and smack him head on.

"The term Rasenshuriken is misleading, it's meant to be a direct frontal attack which explains the need for the accompanied diversion. In this case, me mustering out whatever Shadow Clones I can. The problem is that the jutsu burns too quickly, it only lasts a few seconds."

"There's no way we're gonna be able to hit him that quickly, he's way too fast."

' _It appears the boy's jutsu is useless so long as I keep my distance.'_ Kakuzu noted ' _So I just have to avoid close combat, don't let myself be distracted by the clones, and keep my eye on the original. Alright, that should be simple enough.'_

Tatsu got back to his feet and stared long and hard at Kakuzu "Alright then, let me give this one more shot, now that I know what I'm doing."

"Tatsu he's an Akatsuki, if you repeat the same move then he'll just dodge it again." Ino pointed out "It won't work, he knows what to expect now. Let's work together and take him down. Right now we're 5 against one, there's no need for us to cross any shaky bridges."

"I know, but… Asuma, do you remember what Kakashi and the rest told me during training, back before Naruto returned?"

Asuma took a moment to figure it out "Something Kakashi, Hayate and I all agreed on."

"You guys all said I was the only shinobi who could surpass my brother, like how Naruto is the only shinobi who can surpass the Fourth Hokage. You all meant what you said, didn't you?"

' _Tatsu…'_

"Believe me Asuma, I know how important teamwork is better than anyone, but right now I need to cross this bridge and I need to cross it alone no matter how dangerous a bridge it turns out to be. If I can't cross this bridge alone and make it to the other side, if I can't avenge my master myself, I'll never be anything more than a worthless little brat who will never amount to anything, so please, don't take away my chance to prove that all of my training for the past 7 years hasn't been in vain."

"...What do you say guys, should we let Tatsu have his chance?"

Ayame grinned "Well Asuma I have to admit, I'm eager to see exactly how much Tatsu has changed."

"And there you have it."

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Dosu led Kin onwards through the forest ' _Shikamaru, as much as I hate to admit it you're smarter than even me. If anyone can beat this guy, it's you.'_ then he heard an explosion in the distance "They're close, let's hurry."

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Hidan lay at the bottom of the hole, having literally been blown to bits by the point-blank explosion.

Shikamaru looked down at him ' _It's over.'_

Then Hidan's eyes shot open and he began laughing maniacally "How dare you, look at this! Just look at the state you've put me in! Jashin will have his vengeance! He'll punish you, just you wait! You will suffer the most terrible judgement ever imposed by the way of Jashin!"

"You and your God don't frighten me." Shikamaru pulled out a kunai with multiple paper bombs attached to the end "You see, you and I believe in different things. Do you want to know what I believe in? The Will of Fire. Right now, the God you should be worried about isn't your stupid Jashin or anyone else. It's me, because I'm the one who's about to pass judgement."

"You fool!"

Shikamaru threw the kunai and the paper bomb detonated, causing the hole to begin caving in.

"Don't say I didn't warn you! The day of retribution will come and the Way of Jashin WILL punish you! And then I'll be the one passing judgement! My teeth, that's all I'll need you'll see, AND I'LL TEAR YOU TO PIECES!" and with that, he was buried alive underneath the rubble.

Shikamaru noticed one of the deer kicking up dirt, revealing Asuma's lighter, which he promptly picked up "Thanks, I can't have Asuma chewing me out for losing this thing."

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Dosu led Kin to the edge of the forest and saw Shikamaru come out "Shikamaru."

"Oh, hey." Shikamaru stopped in front of them "Reinforcements huh? Sorry, but you're just a little late."

"Wait, so you really defeated one of the Akatsuki by yourself? I thought you were good, but that's insane."

"Yeah, well…" Shikamaru stuck Asuma's lighter in his bag "I had a feeling this was something important I had to do on my own, and I need to figure out something in the meantime."

"Fair enough, so did you figure it out?"

"Yeah, I think I did. So what's going on with the others?"

"No idea, we made a beeline here the moment we met up with them. We should get back to them though, it couldn't hurt to give them some backup."

"Right." and they raced off to rejoin the others.

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Tatsu tightened his headband and stepped forward ' _Keep watching over me Hayate-sensei, this one is for you.'_

Kakuzu studied him intently ' _So he's going to try again is he? Well then, I'd better shift to a long range attack style.'_ he then let his tentacles extend spread out, taking on a disgusting long range octopus-like form.

' _That's not like any ordinary transformation, the level of his chakra just exploded. He's preparing for my next move.'_ Tatsu formed a hand seal " **Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** three clones poofed into existence, one of them helping Tatsu form the Rasenshuriken.

' _Here we go…'_

"Alright guys, now!" the clones charged in first, with the original right behind them.

Kakuzu leapt directly above them and went straight for the original ' _I can ignore the Shadow Clones, they're only a distraction. Aim for the head and the rest will fall, once I diffuse his jutsu I'm home free!'_ he charged at Tatsu and impaled him, dissipating the Rasenshuriken "It is done."

Then Tatsu disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"What? Just a Shadow Clone?!"

"Gotcha!" Tatsu appeared above him with one final Rasenshuriken ' _He can't escape from this one and I made this using every ounce of my chakra I have left, this is gonna end it!'_

' _I see, he hid himself in the crowd so he could catch me in a spot where I couldn't avoid it!'_

"This is for the Leaf! THIS IS FOR HAYATE!" and with that, he slammed the Rasenshuriken into Kakuzu's back, pushing it harder and harder as it grinded into Kakuzu's back until a wind dome was formed from the impact, the force sending him flying away and tumbling back once he hit the ground.

"Watch out, the shockwave is about to hit!" Asuma and the rest braced themselves.

Kakuzu felt the attack destroying all of his black threads and obliterate both of his hearts, causing him to scream in pain. With all of his hearts destroyed, Kakuzu fell to the ground and laid at the bottom of the crater, and he wouldn't be getting up again.

Asuma watched in awe, the rest following ' _The number of separate attacks must be almost infinite, at this point I doubt even Kakashi would've been able to follow them all.'_ he looked back to where Tatsu lay on the ground ' _That jutsu is just unbelievable, I can't think of any other word to describe it… Tatsu… well well, you finally…'_

Tatsu held up a weak thumbs up "Alright… that was awesome…" he felt a hand on his shoulder and looked to see the spirit of Hayate kneeling down beside him "Hayate-sensei…"

Hayate gave his usual kind smile as he helped Tatsu to his knees "You did well here Tatsu, I'm proud of you."

"Thank you sensei."

Hayate looked up at the sky, then down at Tatsu "My Will of Fire, I entrust to you now. I'm proud of you, and I will always watch over you." and with that, he disappeared.

' _I accept it sensei, I will always treasure it. The Will of Fire, the strength of will to protect our village and everyone in it. Farewell sensei, and I will keep my promise to you no matter what it takes.'_

"Tatsu!" Ino and Lee came running over.

' _My friends… they're here…'_

"I've got you." Lee helped him straighten up.

"Thanks…"

"Hold him steady Lee, just like that." Ino got to work healing him, her voice going soft "You really haven't changed at all… you're still so reckless…"

"Sorry…"

"I'm just impressed you could pull the Rasenshuriken off three times in a row like that, you barely managed to do it twice before." Lee pointed out.

"Yeah… and look at me now…"

Asuma watched the scene from afar ' _Such confidence, and the whim to turn failure on its head and quickly plan his next move. You've become strong Tatsu, truly strong. Jutsu that were beyond Kakashi or even the Fourth Hokage are well within his command. I guess the time has come for us to finally pass the torch. He's surpassed me, he's surpassed all of us. Can you sense it? You're the one who's always before his eyes, inspiring him and pushing him to keep going even further than anyone thought possible. It's you who makes him strong, you who pushes him to be a better person, a better shinobi. You know that, don't you Kazuma?'_

"Asuma." said Ayame "I think it's time we get the others and head back."

"In a second, I've just got one last loose end to tie up." he made his way to the bottom of the crater.

Kakuzu was still alive, but he was unable to move "Defeated… by a pack of brats… incredible…"

"You did fight the First Hokage, it's no wonder you see us as brats. But that cuts both ways, to our eyes you're nothing more than an old geezer whose time has long since ended. And here you are, dying and hugging the earth like a worm." Asuma drew one of his trench knives, jade green energy crackling along the blade as he activated his Jade Thunder "One by one the new generation will catch up to you, and in the end they'll surpass you." he then brought down the blade, and the crackling electricity could be heard around the area.

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Tsunade nodded in approval towards the group before her "Well done everyone, but it's not time to celebrate just yet, not when there are still more of the Akatsuki at large. Tatsu, those wounds of yours…"

"I can endure some pain." Tatsu assured her "I know you want me to head straight to the hospital, but I've got something to do before then."

"Alright then, and as far as the rest of you are concerned I order you all to take a few days off. Give your minds and bodies a rest, got it? Dismissed."

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Yugao stood staring at Hayate's grave ' _Hayate…'_

"Should you really be up and about right now?"

Yugao looked back to see Tatsu standing behind her "Tatsu, you're here…"

"I wouldn't want to be anywhere else." Tatsu pulled out a scroll and summoned Hayate's katana, which he then laid on the grave.

"You've lost your role model haven't you? Hayate loved you like a son you know that, you must miss him too."

"Of course I do." Tatsu let out a long sad sigh "When I begin to think of all of the things Hayate-sensei taught me over the years, some things being more important than others, things like Shogi and Kendo were relatively minor. I'd be lying through my teeth if I said that I didn't miss him, but I'm not a little kid anymore and I'm expected to act my age right? I'm not allowed to wallow in my own self pity when I've got so much responsibility on my plate." he let out a small smile "I used to whine all the time about everything, I made a lot of mistakes because of that, and every time I did Hayate-sensei came to my rescue. He was a kind and honest man with a good heart, with great wisdom that I found hard to figure out at first, and the way I see it I wouldn't want anybody else in the world as a role model." then he stood "Well then, looks like I'm finally going to get my turn now."

Yugao's eyes widened, then softened as her hand unconsciously trailed to her stomach "So you know…"

"It was Hayate-sensei's final request of me. When that baby arrives, it will finally be my turn to act as its guardian and teacher. I still have a lot of growing up to do before then don't I?"

Yugao smiled softly "Thank you…"

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Later, Tatsu sat in his hospital bed, wondering one thing ' _How do I let myself get dragged into crap like this?'_

"You're way too reckless, that's your problem." Ino scolded ' _Abrasions, contusions, nothing very serious there. The real problem is his left arm, it's broken in several places.'_ she placed her hands on the arm and began healing it ' _His body just isn't up to using this jutsu.'_

"Hey Ino?"

"Yeah?"

"Hayate-sensei taught me a lot of things, but if I were to pick one out of all of them then it would have to be not to go out with any regrets. I figured I'd take care of one of my regrets right here and now." he took her into his arms and kissed her full on the lips.

' _No regrets, right…'_ Ino took a moment to process what was happening, before she returned the kiss in full.

' _No regrets.'_

"Is this a bad time?"

"Kind of-" Tatsu paused when he saw Shikaku standing in the doorway "Oh hey Shikaku, how's it going?"

Shikaku sat down on the edge of the bed "Ino, you mind giving us a minute?"

"Sure, I guess." Ino stood and made her way towards the door.

"I'm sure your dad's gonna want a word with you."

"...Crap." then she ran off.

"Inoichi's gonna lose it."

Tatsu chuckled "Probably, so what's up?"

"I'm sorry about Hayate."

Tatsu looked out towards the window "To be honest, before the past week or so happened I thought I'd never be able to make it without Hayate-sensei guiding me, but I know that I've gotta move on and step up. After all, sacrifice can't be avoided when you're living as a shinobi. Take the Climbing Silver for example."

"Like how you sacrifice the pawn to protect your king."

"If the Leaf were a game of Shogi then I'd probably be a knight."

"What are you talking about?"

"It's nothing, just something Hayate-sensei and Asuma mentioned to me a couple of times awhile back."

"Oh is that so? Good old Hayate, I guess he really knew you inside and out. So then, who's represented by the King."

Tatsu took a good long pause before he spoke "The next generation, the children who carry the future of the Leaf on their shoulders, they are the King."

"You do get it don't you? Very good, but you're not quite good enough at protecting the King. You're gonna need to work harder."

"Yeah I know."

"By the way, Lady Tsunade wanted me to give you this." he handed Tatsu a letter.

Tatsu looked at it, his expression being unreadable ' _Tatsu, if you're reading this then the worst has happened on this mission and I died at the hands of the Akatsuki. I know I most likely told you this in my final moments, but just in case you weren't there I wrote it down here just to be safe. You remember our talk about the King back before Naruto returned? Well I think it's about time I tell you who the King is. The Kings are the unborn children of the next generation who will be given the task of protecting the Leaf. Yugao is carrying one. She's pregnant with our child, but if anything happens to me then someone needs to protect it. Please, protect my King with all of your strength. I hereby entrust you with this task. Please, make me proud to say that I was your master.'_ tears slid down his face ' _I will sensei, I promise I'll make you proud.'_ then he thought of something "Hey Shikaku, I feel like I should tell you."

"Tell me what?"

"To put it bluntly, I told your son about the Kyuubi back when we were in the Academy."

Shikaku slowly looked down at him "I see. And what does he think?"

"He found it a drag, but he said it takes real strength to be able to hold in something like that, not to mention take all of that crap from the villagers, like that one shopkeeper guy."

"You mean the one you got sent to Ibiki for almost letting it slip about Naruto right in front of him and Yugao took him away?"

"Yeah, what happened to that guy anyway?"

"Nobody's seen him since that day and whenever anyone asks Ibiki he just laughs and walks away. It's rather unnerving, even to me."

"Tell me about it. You know Shikaku, you, Inochi and Choza are probably the only parents to didn't make their kids treat Naruto like he was the plague or something. That's one of the main reasons why, out of all of the jonin in the village, aside from Hayate I definitely respect you the most."

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Tsunade stood over Kakuzu's corpse with Kakashi and Asuma "The examination isn't complete yet, but we've already found out something about this new jutsu Tatsu and Naruto learned."

"What is it?" asked Asuma.

"The damage this man sustained didn't just come from a barrage of individual blows no matter how many there might've been."

"What do you mean?" asked Kakashi.

"As impossible as it may seem, his entire chakra network has been severed."

"His chakra network?"

"Yes that's right, I know it's difficult to imagine but it's true."

"I didn't know the Wind Style: Rasenshuriken could be so thorough."

"The effect on the body is more like a poison than a physical trauma, it's an incredibly precise attack doing its damage on a cellular level. I believe it shapes the wind chakra into a blizzard of miniature swords that systematically attacks every cell in the body."

"Some jutsu. Poison indeed, so it would be more accurate to speak in terms of concentration rather than in number of attacks. So what about Tatsu, what about the one who used the jutsu in the first place?"

"Well there lies the problem."

"I see."

"Listen Kakashi, no matter what happens, don't let Tatsu try to use Rasenshuriken again and don't let Naruto use it either."

"It's that serious?"

"I saw those same symptoms in Tatsu's left arm, not as severe but the same. If he keeps using that jutsu then he'll lose it, the ability to wield chakra."

Asuma frowned and thought back to when Tatsu hit Kakuzu with the Rasenshuriken ' _It's a powerful jutsu, but it comes with risks.'_

"Once any cell in the body has become disconnected from the chakra network it's beyond my ability to heal it even with my medical ninjutsu. Make sure they understand that."

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Once Shikaku was gone, Tatsu, now with his left arm heavily bandaged, was reading a book when he heard a knock at the door "It's open."

Then the cavalry came in "Hey Tatsu."

"Hey Naruto, Lee… Sasuke."

"So you heard about this new jutsu?" asked Naruto.

"Yeah, not even for a last resort or we're f*cked for life. I've got it, don't worry." then he turned serious "Now then, on to important matters."

Sasuke nodded "Orochimaru's body is beginning to reject him, we've got about 6 weeks at the most. I've already picked out a few faces, the minute Orochimaru comes after my body I'm gonna take him out, then assemble my squad and go after Itachi."

"We're all gonna be training like crazy until then too."

"I'm gonna learn some new wind water and fire jutsu." Naruto told them.

"I'm not going to stop until I open the seventh gate." Lee promised them.

"Alright, let's end this one on a high note. Let's do the thing." Tatsu held out his right hand, with the rest of them following "As we approach the decisive battle grounds, believe that the blades of our hearts and souls will not shatter! Believe that our resolves will never waver! Though our paths may diverge, our iron hearts will remain as one! Swear that even if the land itself may break asunder we will return alive and well! Scatter!"

"Right!" Naruto and Lee burst out the door, and Sasuke's Thunder Clone disappeared with a surge.

' _And I'm still stuck in here for another week.'_

 **A/N:**

 **I've read various fics about Ayame being a former ANBU and I thought it was a fun idea so I decided to expand on it.**

 **For the reader R who wanted to know about Naruto's dream and his reaction to the apples, those weren't meant to be anything big, just a few jokes to lighten the mood before the tragedy occurred. As for the quiet one, we all know who he ends up with. Like the old saying goes, it's always the quiet ones.**


	11. Hebi's Formation, Teams Assemble

About a month and a half had passed since Hayate's death and the defeat of Hidan and Kakuzu, and everyone had been training intensely:

Tatsu had gone to train with the dragons at Mount Hakurei, leaving Hiryu behind to message him in case anything happened.

Naruto had been learning collaboration jutsu with the toads.

With some information Tatsu had given him, Lee had been experimenting with a new technique based off of the Leaf Dragon God.

But even during their training, each of them knew what was about to occur.

The time was near.

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Orochimaru laid in a bed in one of his hideouts, coughing and hacking violently "I'm so close… just a little longer…"

"Yes, finally." Kabuto looked at his old ninja info cards "It's been awhile since the Chunin Exams, the Forest of Death. Three years have gone by. That young genin who once trembled before you, he's matured a lot hasn't he?"

"I knew the moment the boy turned his immature Sharingan on me, he had such magnificent eyes even then. Anyone who's developed a Sharingan that strong at his age must be someone special. I knew that he would prove to be an even greater treasure than Itachi, yes I realized at once that he was the perfect choice, especially when I saw the pain he carried within. I knew he would eventually come seeking me out in search of even more power."

"Yes I remember, it was for that reason you gave him the Curse Mark after going through the trouble to go all the way to Mount Koryu to see if it would bare fruit."

"Yes, what more can be said other than that he was perfect? Having the strength of will to fight off the Curse Mark even as he did battle with Sasori and defeated him. Having the Sharingan and the power of Raijin as well as the wisdom of knowing when to use it."

"It's true, there's nothing like combat for accelerating a ninja's development. You were wise to let him take Sasori out, it saved us the trouble of doing it ourselves." Kabuto handed him some medicine.

"I suppose so. After all, he did improve didn't he? There is no one else in this world who can train him as well as I can, no one else that fully understands the darkness that consumes his soul."

"And there's no one else who can make him more like you is there? It's as though the destruction of the Leaf is merely a side benefit. It's time I got your next dose of medicine ready, we have to make sure you're as strong as possible for the Transference Ritual."

Orochimaru reflected on the Third sealing his jutsu ' _Curse that old fool, his interference robbed me of my jutsu and forced me to delay the reanimation. But now, everything is ready at last. The final stage is set, all the trouble the old man gave me is just a distant memory now. Finally, I will have the body I need. Your body, Sasuke! All I've done I've done to achieve one goal, or rather to clear away the darkness that stands between me and that goal.'_ he suddenly let out a violent cough.

Kabuto rushed to his side "Lord Orochimaru!" he stumbled back when he received a vicious glare, along with the image of a snake about to devour him.

"What's the matter with you Kabuto?"

"That cough doesn't sound very good, are you alright?"

"I'm fine, fine. The goal is in sight, I will soon be in the perfect host body and feel wonderful."

"You're at your breaking point, if you don't take the level 10 medicine then there's no more I can do for you. I'll go get the other medicine, I'll be back in a minute." and he left, still able to hear Orochimaru cackling maniacally behind the door ' _That thirst for blood… even with his body pushed beyond the breaking point, he laughs. He endures through sheer strength of will, that's why I'll never leave your side Lord Orochimaru. Even when you brought down the Hokage and the Kazekage, even when you were on the brink of achieving the destruction of the Leaf Village, even when you battled the Sannin Tsunade and Jiraiya both at the same time, I've never seen you so menacing and full of ambition as you are right now. What's frightening is how much you've progressed, if all goes according to plan then not only the Five Kage but the whole world will grovel in the dust at your feet. That is, once you cast off this body and take Sasuke's.'_

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At the same time, Sasuke's eye snapped open from his meditation, his Sharingan instantly flaring into life ' _The time has come, the time to end this. Orochimaru, if you think you can try to destroy my home and the people I love then you've got a nasty wake up call coming for you.'_

The time had come.

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Orochimaru let out a weak chuckle and clutched himself in pain ' _This pain is the price of the reanimation, but it's nothing, less than nothing when weighed against the greatness that is to come.'_ then he sensed something and quickly rose his arms just in time to block a lightning spear attack from beyond the door ' _This chakra nature, this is a change in chakra form I've never seen. Who is it?'_

With several sharp slashes of lightning, Sasuke appeared, Sanda Sharingan flaring, his Chidori Sharp Spear crackling in his left "Hey."

"Of course it's you, I knew you'd come for me."

"Then you should know why I'm here too. You have absolutely nothing more to teach me, so I might as well get my mission over with." his Curse Mark spread until it covered about half of his face "You told me that you wanted me to learn to be heartless or I'd never be able to kill Itachi, well that's what you're going to get." he slowly advanced forward.

Orochimaru redirected the attack to go through the wall.

"You see Orochimaru, I'm stronger than you now so at this point I don't see any reason to delay any longer. My mission of killing you."

"A bold statement from a nursling Uchiha!"

"Big words from the pitiful snake who could only handle the nursling. You were there in the Forest of Death during the Chunin Exams to see if this nursling showed promise, so you thought you'd lay claim to me. You thought you could bind me to you with this Curse Mark that it took you two years to mark me with, claiming that you understood my purpose, and to some extent you do. I'm an avenger, I want revenge, I wanted it so badly I almost lost myself, but my friends brought me back and reminded me who I am, and I fooled you with the false claim that I was willing to give up my body to get it. What you wanted was the Sharingan, and from me you'd get that along with the power of Raijin. Was that what you believed? Or was it merely that you were pathetically defeated by Itachi and came after me, the baby of the clan? And they claim you to be the genius out of the three Legendary Sannin, but you turned out to be nothing more than another run of the mill ninja that doesn't even come close to being in the same league as the Uchiha. As a matter of fact, next to the Uchiha, genius like yours pretty bland and ordinary. The way you covet the power of the Uchiha, the way your force feed yourself various medicines provided for you by Kabuto and go leaping and squirming from one body to the next, it's nothing more than disgusting, monstrous, and above all, pathetic. As one of the last of the Uchiha clan, when I look at you all I see is nothing more than a pathetic miserable wretch. And on top of that I don't like your style, what exactly to you hope to accomplish by scurrying from one hideout to the next conducting your heinous experiments, using the lives of hundreds upon thousands of innocent people one after another, trying to unlock what you perceive to be the mysteries of nature? You toy with the lives of innocent people for the sake of this vein, ridiculous and utterly pointless cause of yours. Your very existence makes me want to wretch. By ridding this world of you, I'll be doing it a favor!" Sasuke drew his Raijin katana and blitzed in front of him, aiming the katana at Orochimaru's throat.

Orochimaru spat something out before falling limp.

' _He shed that skin to reveal his true form.'_ Sasuke studied the entity before him: a large white snake made up of hundreds of smaller snakes "A gigantic white scaled snake, I have to admit I never would've recognized you. In order to keep switching from one body to the next, you spent years experimenting endlessly and now you turned into whatever the hell this is."

"Now Sasuke, you are MINE! GIVE ME YOUR BODY!" he lunged forward.

Sasuke leapt over the attack and easily dodged it.

Several snakes shot off of Orochimaru's body and lunged at him.

Sasuke cut them down with ease, only to see a large barrage of snakes lunge next ' _Damn, I guess I've gotta use it.'_ he freed his arms from his shirt and allowed the snakes to coil around him, only to activate the second level of his Curse Mark "A snake that crawled on the earth once dreamt of soaring through the skies, knowing fully well just how impossible it was. Still hoping beyond all hope or reason, it kept its eye on a baby bird emerging in its own nest, never realizing one crucial fact." he broke free, revealing that he had fully transformed, complete with wings made of lightning infused with the power of Raijin, shredding the snakes engulfing him "What the snake didn't realize was that he had become the prey, for in reality that bird is a hawk that's at last ready to fulfill his destiny and take to the skies."

"SASUKE!" Orochimaru lunged and shot several snakes forward.

Sasuke leapt over them and, using his Raijin sword as a basis, fired a Chidori from the blade, shredding the snakes.

"SASUKE!" Orochimaru himself lunged forward once more, recalling his past, how he became interested in reanimation and the Sharingan,

With several strikes faster than one could see, Sasuke cut Orochimaru down, leaving several bloody pieces behind as he returned to his original form, his eyes returning from the Sanda Sharingan to the basic Sharingan "So that's it? That was extremely disappointing, I expected much more from you." then he suddenly fell to one knee.

Orochimaru chuckled, despite being in pieces, as his body released an odor "Looks like it's beginning to take effect now. The bodily fluids of the great serpent evaporate when they meet the air, they have a numbing effect and I see they're already weakening you. I am immortal, I am eternal, even your most powerful jutsu can't come close to killing me! Now… LET ME TAKE YOU!"

Then Sasuke saw everything go black.

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Next thing Sasuke knew, he was surrounded by what appeared to be flesh that took the form of snakes "Where am I?"

With a sinister chuckle, Orochimaru rose, surrounded by these flesh "This is the universe inside of me, this is where the Transference Ritual will be held. Shall we begin?"

Sasuke found himself being engulfed by the intestine snakes as various other past hosts appeared engulfed by the snakes ' _So this is how it works.'_

Orochimaru studied Sasuke's Sharingan ' _What remarkable visual prowess… this is truly magnificent!'_ he reflected on his failure to take Itachi's body ' _It's as if I'm reliving that moment all over again.'_ he stared into Sasuke's Sharingan ' _Those eyes… this time… those eyes are mine!'_

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Things were quiet on another end.

Kabuto by this point had given up on preparing Orochimaru's medicine ' _No medicine will help him now, tomorrow or better yet today, the sooner we perform the ritual the better. It's funny, I can't imagine Sasuke will go along without fuss. Still, it's not like he could do anything about it. Not against that ritual at least.'_ and he exited the room, making his way to Orochimaru's, only to find the door open, and he quickly hid by the entrance, slowly and cautiously peering inside, only to see Sasuke inside ' _Why is Sasuke here?'_ then he froze when he saw the remains of Orochimaru's true form ' _The giant snake has shed its skin. So has the ritual already taken place? What is going on here?'_

Then Sasuke turned to face him "I know you're there Kabuto, come out already."

Very slowly, Kabuto stood and revealed himself.

Sasuke walked past him without batting an eye.

Then Kabuto's voice stopped him "Just tell me one thing. Exactly which one are you?"

Sasuke slowly turned to face him and smirked "Well Kabuto, you tell me." his Sharingan flared into life.

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Kabuto found himself inside Orochimaru's little universe, seeing exactly what took place during the Transference Ritual ' _This is the Transference Ritual… he's showing me what happened… this is it, the moment where the outcome of the ritual is decided.'_

' _Yes, that's it…'_ Orochimaru continued engulfing Sasuke in the flesh snakes.

That is, before Sasuke's Curse Mark flared along his body, and the flesh engulfing him turned from flesh pink to black "Nice try."

Orochimaru found his own snakes turning on him "But how?! This can't be, I created this universe! I control all here! No… it's impossible! This is my own space!"

Sasuke had the flesh snakes rise, intent on devouring Orochimaru then and there "Orochimaru, it doesn't matter whatever jutsu you try. Even if you try hundreds or thousands, my eyes will see through them all. Surely you must realize already. _I knew my Sharingan would be able to reject the ritual, but I honestly didn't think my will alone would be able to erode this entire universe.'_

"No, I will not allow this to happen! I am the immortal Orochimaru! I am invincible! I will not die here! This will not happen to me, especially not here! I am the one who will unlock the mysteries of nature! I am the one who will receive everything-" then the gigantic flesh snakes devoured him.

Kabuto froze when he found himself back in reality "Then that means that Lord Orochimaru is dead. No, it's more like…"

Sasuke deactivated his Sharingan and smirked "Yeah, that's right. I absorbed him completely, and there's not even a scrap of him left.

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Throughout the land, various people, namely Anko, Naruto, Tsunade, Jiraiya, Tatsu and Itachi all sensed a bad omen, knowing fully well that something dire had taken place.

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Sasuke made his way into one of Orochimaru's labs "Suigetsu."

"It's you… I knew you'd come." a quiet voice rang from inside one of the tanks "You being here must mean that you killed Orochimaru."

"That's right. But never mind that right now, let's get you out of there." not wanting to electrocute Suigetsu, Sasuke drew a kunai and slashed through the tank, shattering the glass.

From the water emerged Suigetsu, completely naked "Free at last, thank you Sasuke."

"Don't bother Suigetsu, you can thank me by being the second. Now come with me."

"What do you mean the second? Who are the others?"

"I have three others in mind. Jugo of the northern hideout, Karin of the southern hideout, and not long ago I recruited Hotaru of the Tsuchigumo clan, the granddaughter of En no Gyoja."

"You sure about that?"

"Is there a problem?"

"No not really, it's just that I can barely stand those two. And more importantly, how did you get the granddaughter of En no Gyoja to join you?"

"You're a descendent of the Second Mizukage, how did Orochimaru recruit you?"

"Fair enough. But going back to Jugo and Karin, I just don't think we'd get along is all. But you know, that's just my two scents. I understand why you picked me of course and I get why you chose this Tsuchigumo girl, but choosing those two is making me wonder about you Sasuke."

"It's official, you talk more than any person I've ever met. Now hurry up and get your clothes on, we're leaving."

"Ordering me around like some sort of big shot are you?" Suigetsu suddenly appeared behind Sasuke and held a finger to his head like a gun "I think it's time we clarified our relationship Sasuke, alright? Don't forget that you're the one who chose to rescue me, you made that decision on your own. I never said anything about following you if you came back for me. Just because you defeated Orochimaru doesn't make you better than me, everybody wanted to kill him. You were Orochimaru's favorite, he let you stay by his side while the rest of us were confined, so you just had a better chance to kill him than the rest of us." a brief pause "Gotcha, I was just kidding that's all." he removed his finger and stepped back "But I did just let you go when I didn't have to, which makes us even for you letting me out of the tank. I'm free of that prison at last, and that means I'm free to go do whatever the hell I want."

"Is that so? Well that's disappointing, but understandable."

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And yet later on the path, Suigetsu was with Sasuke as he hydrated himself by swimming around in a puddle "Hey I forgot to ask you, it was your squad wasn't it?"

"What do you mean?" asked Sasuke.

"You were the ones who brought down my predecessor Zabuza Momochi weren't you?"

"That's right, and it was on that mission that I awakened my Sharingan."

"So tell me, what exactly happened to his sword?"

"You mean the Executioner's Blade?"

"Yeah, how about this? I'll make you a deal, you tell me where the blade is and once I get my hands on it I'll agree to join your team."

"...I'll tell you once you put some pants on. But first…" he formed a hand seal " **Summoning Jutsu!"** he slammed his hand on the ground.

Then Hotaru suddenly appeared "Is it time Sasuke? And who's the naked guy? And more importantly, why is he naked?"

"Because he was like that when I found him in Orochimaru's hideout, and yes it's time. To answer your other question, his name is Suigetsu Hozuki, younger brother of Mangetsu Hozuki of the Seven Ninja Swordsman of the Mist and a descendent of the Second Mizukage. And once he gets some pants on, we're heading to our first destination."

"Where would that be?"

"The Land of Waves."

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After about 3 days of travelling, the three of them arrived at the Land of Waves.

Sasuke looked up at the name of the bridge ' _The Great 7 Bridge. Sounds appropriate.'_

"The Great 7 Bridge? Sounds pretty weird to be honest." Suigetsu commented.

"You had to be there to understand."

"Fair enough. Hey by the way, did Master Zabuza put up a good fight?"

"You could say that. His sheer killer intent alone let me petrified when I first laid eyes on him. He's one of the strongest opponents I've ever faced. Now then, let's go."

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They made their way to Zabuza and Haku's graves, where Sasuke paid his respects, but the Executioner's Blade was nowhere in sight.

"It's not here." Suigetsu noted "Sasuke, are you sure this is the right place?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes "There's no other graves near the bridge, of course this has to be the right place."

"Well it's not here so what's the deal?"

"How should I know? If it's not here then chances are it was taken by some jackass who wanted to claim the credit for beating Zabuza."

"Well yeah I figured that was obvious enough, it's not gonna walk off on its own. Well sorry Sasuke, but since Master Zabuza's blade is gone so is any chance of me joining your team."

"Hold on a minute." Hotaru protested "He goes out of your way to free you from captivity and you just up and-"

"Enough." Sasuke cut her off "For now, let's head into the town and get some lunch. I don't know about you two, but I haven't eaten in almost a week. This way." he led them across the bridge and looked around at the town's people ' _This place has really flourished since the last time I was here, I guess three years really can make a difference. Naruto really does have a unique ability to change people._ So what're you gonna do now?"

Suigetsu shrugged "What else? I'm gonna look for the sword. The blade of the Seven Ninja Swordsman of the Mist was passed down from generation to generation, it's the tradition. I was all set to become one of those swordsman myself, that's what I was training for. So it only makes sense that if Master Zabuza is gone then I'm the only one who should inherit his Executioner's Blade-"

Then one guy, actually one of Gato's former thugs, roughly bumped into him "Why don't you watch where you're walking you idiot."

Sasuke stopped Suigetsu from letting it escalate "Don't."

"What, you wanna make something of it?"

Sasuke cast the thug a cold glare "That depends, do you?"

"...Just watch it. I swear, this place is crawling with idiots." and he walked away.

"Wimp."

"Man you are way nicer than I am." Suigetsu commented "So it looks like you owe me for not starting trouble, so how are we gonna settle up?"

"How about by not making you pay for your own food. _Please say no please no please say no.'_

"Fair enough."

' _Dammit! I didn't think to snag some money from Orochimaru before I left! Now what the hell am I gonna do?'_

"Here." Hotaru held out some money "It's not a lot, but I want to help."

' _Oh thank god… wait, this doesn't feel right._ You really don't have to-"

"I'm part of this team too, I want to pay my share." and cue the sinister Big Head Jutsu created by Iruka combined with the sinister look developed by Yamato.

"...Okay."

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Later, they were in a restaurant with Sasuke getting heart-eyed stares from the waitresses.

Suigetsu on the other hand was eating to his heart's content "Man this yogurt is so great, it's been ages since I've had anything this good. I was locked in that tank for way too long."

"Is that why you're wasting our time?" Hotaru kept munching on some dumplings.

"None of us are really in a hurry." Sasuke munched on some rice.

"Why are you putting a team together anyway?" asked Suigetsu "Just what are you up to anyway?"

"I'll explain the whole situation to you once the whole team has been assembled."

"...Hey I know, let's conquer the world. You're not gonna say something like that are you?"

"If you're gonna conquer the world then do it with your own team, I'm after something I feel is more important. Something much more important."

"If anyone else said they wanted something more important than the whole world then I wouldn't believe it, but I don't know. When you of all people say it, I start to think that such a thing is really possible."

"Good to know." then Sasuke looked over to the waitress "Excuse me, do you mind if I ask you something?"

The waitress blushed "Yes?"

"You know the Great 7 Bridge? Have you ever heard of a large sword being there or where it might be now?"

"A sword? Yeah, I may have heard something about that once. Why?"

"I'm looking for it, I'd really appreciate the help."

"Really? You would? Maybe someone else knows, I'll go ask right away." and she rushed off.

"2 minutes tops."

"That was underhanded." Hotaru pointed out.

"Maybe, but I figured they'd be more willing to help me than Suigetsu. He's got the pervert eyes."

"The what eyes?"

"You ever hear of the crazy eyes? It's the pervert version of that." then Sasuke mentally counted down ' _3… 2… 1…'_

Then the waitresses all crowded around him "Okay, so we think we know who might know you know. Tazuna, he lives by the river."

"Tazuna, huh? _Of course, I should've guessed as much.'_

"Who's Tazuna?" asked Hotaru.

"He's the master carpenter who built the Great 7 Bridge. He was also the client for the mission where we fought Zabuza."

"What's he like?"

"An annoying old drunkard, but he's a good man with a good heart. Just not a good sense of humor." he looked back "Thank you."

The waitresses all fainted.

' _Okay, so it's not all bad.'_

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Once they checked to see if Tazuna was there, they found a carpenter that worked for Tazuna and questioned him.

The carpenter shook his head "Sorry, the boss isn't here right now."

"Do you know where he is then?" asked Sasuke.

"He and his grandson Inari went to build a bridge in the Land of Lightning. No point in waiting around for him either, they won't be back for a whole nother year."

"I see."

Suigetsu let out a groan "The Land of Lightning? Do you have any idea how far away that is?"

"Maybe you can help us then, do you know of a large blade that was left near the Great 7 Bridge?"

The carpenter shrugged "That old thing? Sure, Tenzen Daikoku took it awhile back. He came here to fight the ninja who wielded that blade, but once he found out the ninja was already dead he just took the sword and left."

"Is that so?" Sasuke bowed, with Hotaru following his lead "Thank you for your time." and they left.

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Suigetsu let out a groan "This just keeps getting harder, now we've gotta track down this Tenzen guy."

"He was an aid to the Feudal Lord of the Land of Water." Hotaru noted "But apparently lots of his men were killed when Zabuza staged his coup against the Fourth Mizukage, and apparently he's held a grudge ever since."

"Looks that way."

Then the same guy from before bumped into Suigetsu "Hey, why don't you watch where you're going loser?"

"How lucky, you're just the guy we were hoping to find."

' _Crap!'_ the guy started running.

"Nope." Sasuke grabbed the guy by the back of his hood.

"Who the hell are you? What do you want from me?"

Suigetsu grinned "You just seem like someone who might know all sorts of things."

"Look, I don't know anything about Tenzen okay?"

"Tell us what you do know, anything at all is fine." he held up a kunai "But don't make me ask you twice."

"Okay okay I'll talk, Tenzen is a politician but that's not all he is."

"He's in charge of a huge group of thugs and bandits?" Sasuke guessed dryly.

"Yeah, and I hear that he doles out huge bribes left and right, and because of that the Feudal Lords do whatever evil things he wants."

"I should've expected as much from scum like him. Now where does he live?"

"He lives in a mansion in the south deep inside the forest, rumor has it that it's guarded by several thousand hired mercenaries. It's claimed to be impenetrable." a voice behind him let out a snort.

Sasuke looked to see a masked figure in a green kimono standing behind him "It's been a long time Dragon, about a year since you and I interacted."

"The word going around is that Orochimaru has been slain, and that you were the one to do it."

"Perhaps, what does it mean to you?"

"Well done, very impressive. I just wanted to run it by you before I sent word to the Leaf about this."

"Do what you will, but make sure at least Tatsu and Naruto are sent out because knowing the Leaf they will send out a squad."

"Very well."

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Nightfall came.

Tenzen awoke to find Sasuke pointing Raijin at his face from directly above him "Who are you? How did you get in here?"

"Very easily, your security is pathetic." Sasuke stated calmly "The day after tomorrow, over 10,000 soldiers will lay siege to this castle. Make sure you gather every available man. And don't forget my name, it's Suigetsu." then he was gone.

Tenzen bolted up "Intruder, all men gather up your arms!"

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Morning came.

Suigetsu watched with Hotaru as an army of men charged forward "Oh man, what the hell is going on now?"

"I dug up some information." Sasuke told him "From what I gather, there's a rival clan planning to attack Tenzen's castle tomorrow with an army numbering in the tens of thousands."

"No way, are you just making that up? Alright fine, the more confused the enemy is the better my chances. Whether it's one opponent or tens of thousands, it doesn't really matter to a ninja like me. I'll sneak in and steal the Executioner's Blade right from under their noses."

"Alright, how about a little wager then?"

"What sort of wager?"

"A competition to see who gets the Executioner's Blade first. Hotaru, do you want in?"

"I don't fight unless necessary." Hotaru told him firmly.

"Fair enough."

Suigetsu grinned "Never in a million years did I expect you to have a playful side Sasuke. Alright, let's do it. Sounds like my kind of fun."

"Then we start now, but there is one rule. You're not allowed to kill anyone."

"...Huh?"

"We're not bloodthirsty savages." he looked at Suigetsu for a moment "I'm not a savage."

"Oh… hey!"

"Well you know it's true."

"...That's not the point!"

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The men were surprised to see Sasuke appear in the center of them "Hey, who the hell are you?! Doesn't matter, you're mine!" one of them charged in like an idiot.

"Nope." Sasuke kicked him off the horse and began beating the crap out of the rest of the idiots.

Suigetsu blinked "So now means starting right now."

10 minutes later…

Suigetsu walked with Sasuke past the unconscious bandits "I guess you really meant right now. Aw dammit, I'll never live it down if I lose this bad. Alright, let's do this then." and cue the onslaught of arrows.

" **Lightning Style: Purple Thunder."** Sasuke dully fired a blast of lightning from his left hand.

"Nice one, I've gotta hand it to you Sasuke-" then he paused when he realized Sasuke was gone. Again.

"You can't hesitate with stuff like this! You can handle the next wave of idiots!"

Suigetsu looked at the oncoming wave of morons "Alright, let's get this over with."

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What he didn't know was that Sasuke was actually watching from afar ' _Now to see if I was right to choose him.'_

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Suigetsu punched out the idiots and charged through the gates, relentlessly punching out guys left and right as he made his way until he found Tenzen "That actually tired me out a little, now to get what I want."

Tenzen was visibly unnerved "That's impossible, there's no way that a single man could defeat all of those soldiers in combat!"

"There's a way, attacking me with conventional weapons is pretty much useless."

"If conventional weapons are useless then how about this?!" then Tenzen's bodyguard burst through the wall with the Executioner's Blade.

"Hey thanks, my Executioner's Blade. I was looking for that-" then he got cut in half, spewing water instead of blood.

Tenzen smirked "You let your guard down and now you've paid the price for your arrogance."

Suigetsu chuckled as he put himself back together "Oh I'm sorry did I forget to tell you? Yeah, blades aren't gonna work on me either. See?" then he looked at the bodyguard "But I'm feeling awfully jealous here, I didn't think anyone would be able to wield that sword without special training. Guess it helps to have a good strong physique doesn't it?" he promptly got splattered, but he reformed "Now I here that you've been telling anybody willing to listen that you killed the demon Zabuza and took this blade from him."

"No way, not me." the bodyguard blurted out quickly "Lord Tenzen, he's the one."

"I see." Suigetsu turned to Tenzen "So you're the one that killed Master Zabuza.

"No, not me!" Tenzen blurted out "The person who killed Zabuza was-"

"Where's your respect?"

"I mean Master Zabuza, I was just trying to say it wasn't me. It was…"

Then Sasuke came up "You're taking your sweet time, how hard is it to take a sword and butcher a cockroach?"

Tenzen instantly recognized him "You're the one! The one from yesterday! Yes him, right there! He's the one you want, the one who killed Master Zabuza! The only thing I did was bring the blade back from where I found it!"

"...I feel like I walked into the middle of a very interesting conversation."

Suigetsu burst out laughing "I gotta say that's pretty impressive, I was amazed you could come up with such a good lie under the circumstances and all."

"Suigetsu, here." Sasuke tossed him a water canister.

"You're so thoughtful, I was starting to feel a bit dehydrated." then Suigetsu turned his attention back to Tenzen "I think you've got the wrong idea, I knew Master Zabuza but it's not like he and I were particularly close."

Tenzen let out a long sigh of relief ' _Oh thank god.'_

"But still, he was an elder of mine." he promptly tossed the bodyguard out of the gigantic hole in the wall, leaving the Executioner's Blade in his hand "I can't let rumors keep flying around about him losing to you, especially when you're a bunch of losers. You understand, don't you?" he held the blade too Tenzen's face.

"You-You'll never get away with this you know, you can't just walk in here and do what you want!"

"You have to pay for what you did, you know that. I think I'll test this thing out on you."

"Just forget it Suigetsu, there's no point in killing a spineless cockroach like him." Sasuke told him.

Suigetsu then promptly slashed through all of the pillars "I've cut through all of the main support pillars, you'd better get out of here quickly. I'm sparing his life such as it is, out of respect for Sasuke." and he walked away.

At that, Tenzen froze "Sasuke? No, not him… the Sasuke that killed Orochimaru?!"

"Hey, you hear what that guy just said? You're famous Sasuke, they know about you even out here in these backwoods." and they made their way out to meet up with Hotaru.

Tenzen was petrified with fear and his screams were drowned out by the crumbling of the castle.

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As they made their way , Suigetsu let out a chuckle "You know as long as I have this blade I could defeat even you, well maybe. Hold on, you knew that I was gonna go after this blade even before you freed me didn't you? And wait, you also knew from the start that the blade wasn't at the grave site anymore. Of course, and the one who told that guy his castle was gonna be attacked and got him to gather all of his men together was you. Tenzen acted like he had met you before and I don't think that was a lie. Hey wait, did you suggest that wager just to get me to go into enemy territory with you? Was this your way of testing me? It was, wasn't it? Man you're terrible, I could've gotten seriously hurt doing that. Well at least now I understand exactly what kind of person you are, and you're pretty much just the way I imagined you'd be. Well anyway, I got my blade so I'll help you just like I promised. Now then, which way do we go? No wait, let me guess. Whatever path is closest, I bet that's what you were gonna say isn't it."

"Maybe." Sasuke stated without batting an eye "And if it was?"

"Well then that means I'm starting to get inside your head Sasuke."

"Whatever you want to believe, now let's take the closest path." a short pause "You guys are wrong though."

"Wrong about what?" asked Hotaru.

"I'm not cold and calculating like Orochimaru was, I'm focused. I refuse to allow my comrades to shed blood, that's the ninja way I established a long time ago."

"That reminds me, what do you plan to do once you accomplish this goal?"

"To be frank, I'll let you guys go your separate ways, I'll return to my village, pay the price for deserting and then find my girlfriend and beg for her forgiveness."

"...Solid plan."

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A day passed, and the group was nearing the hideout in the middle of the ocean off of the coast of the Land of Waves.

"Can I ask you something Sasuke?" Suigetsu spoke up.

"What is it?" asked Sasuke.

"Why exactly are you dragging a team together anyway?"

"It's simple, I have a goal I want to reach and forming a team will help me reach that goal faster than I would alone. Ever since I joined up with Orochimaru a few months ago, I've been preparing for when this would happen. I've been carefully selecting the most powerful shinobi who catch my eye. You're a descendent of the Second Mizukage and Hotaru is the granddaughter of the previous head of the Tsuchigumo clan."

"Okay, but I'm still not sure why you would choose Karin. You could do better. I mean unlike me she was one of Orochimaru's followers. She's the warden of the whole southern hideout where Orochimaru kept his test subjects locked up, though she claimed that she was only following Orochimaru's orders she personally experimented on me many times. But most of all I don't like that personality of hers."

"Believe me, I'm well aware of that. She's a descendent of the nearly extinct Uzumaki clan, a clan distantly related to the First Hokage. Because of that, she has a special ability, one possessed by only one other person that I know of."

"That's true, I guess she's got that going for her."

Sasuke looked ahead "We're here."

"I can't believe how little security there is in this hideout." Hotaru commented "Shouldn't they at least have guards or something?"

"She has this place under complete control, that's why there isn't any need for guards or anything else of the sort."

"Still though it's too quiet here, I don't like it." Suigetsu commented "It's making me start to wonder if word of Orochimaru's death has reached here already."

"Well it did reach a cockroach like Tenzen so it wouldn't surprise me."

"True." then they reached the door and Suigetsu noticed Sasuke looking at him "What?"

Sasuke pointed at the Executioner's Blade.

"In case you didn't notice Sasuke, you have a sword too."

"Mine is more suited for electrocuting things and blowing them up, your blade is better suited for a task like this."

"Alright, fine." Suigetsu pulled the Executioner's Blade from his back "Open sesame!" and with several clean strokes, he destroyed the door.

"That wasn't so hard was it? Maybe if you stop whining and start getting off your ass and doing stuff you wouldn't irritate people so much." Sasuke led them inside and passed a cell, where the prisoners started muttering about how the rumor that Orochimaru was dead was true.

A little further down, _she_ appeared before them "I knew it was you Sasuke, if you're here by yourself then that can only mean one thing. The rumors about Orochimaru's death are true." she completely ignored Suigetsu and Hotaru "Well? Why have you come here Sasuke?"

"Sasuke came here because he wants to talk to you." Suigetsu answered for him "But we don't want to stand and talk so take us to a room where we can sit okay? I'm tired, I haven't walked this far in a long time."

Karin looked back at Sasuke "You wanna talk? Talk Sasuke."

"I said we don't wanna do this out here in the hall so just take us inside right now, don't think I don't know that you're just trying to ignore me here Karin."

"Oh please." Karin took a whiff "You're unpleasant."

"You're not so pleasant yourself."

"You little-"

"Enough." Sasuke got in between them "Listen Karin just knock it off, just take us to a room already will you?"

"...Alright fine, come on."

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So Karin led them into a room deeper in the hideout "Alright, what do you guys want?"

"Karin come with me, I need you on my team." Sasuke told her.

"Oh really? Why would I go with you? I have responsibilities, I run this place."

"Orochimaru is gone now."

"So? There are still a lot of prisoners here."

"Speaking of which, they were awfully quiet when we walked by them. They must know that Orochimaru is dead." Suigetsu pointed out "That news had to have reached here by now."

"I've noticed that the number of prisoners has dropped since the last time I was here, and when we came in I also saw signs of recent digging in the ground near the front of the entrance to this hideout." Sasuke noted "Karin, I know that you possess a razor sharp intellect and that you're an expert in controlling information."

"Of course, rumors of Orochimaru's death started circulating among the prisoners so to keep them from staging a riot and trying to escape you put some sort of plan in place. Isn't that right? You've planted a spy among the inmates so if anyone starts asking about Orochimaru…"

"Karin, it's your cautious nature that's kept this prison at peace for so long. In fact, it's what's kept you alive." Sasuke pointed out.

Karin glared "Hey, you don't have to put it that way you know."

Suigetsu let out a sigh "Well there's no doubt that Orochimaru trained you, you're scary. I bet you sensed our presence long before we even arrived at your door, and you probably thought up half a dozen ways to kill us."

"I would've if it was just you or that girl."

"Well you'd never take down Sasuke right?"

"I didn't say that you idiot! Sasuke's my colleague, it's different. Besides, I wanted to see if the rumors were really true. I wanted to find out if he had killed Orochimaru."

"I killed him." Sasuke confirmed nonchalantly.

"How can you say that so casually?"

"Because I did the world a favor." he turned to the others "Suigetsu, Hotaru, I want the two of you to go out there and release everyone being held prisoner here."

"What?"

"You and that commanding tone again." but Suigetsu stood nonetheless, with Hotaru following.

"You can't just come in here and take over, you have no idea what I went through to maintain order!"

"Look it's simple, without prisoners there's no need for a warden." explained Sasuke "I'll ask you one more time, come with me Karin and join my team. So what will your decision be then?"

"Well as entertaining as this is, we're going to go release the prisoners now." Suigetsu grabbed his sword.

"I'm not going, I don't owe you anything so I'm staying right here." Karin said firmly.

' _Sure.'_ then Suigetsu left, with Hotaru following his lead, leaving Sasuke and Karin alone.

"Fine by me, if you're not interested then I'll get someone else to join." Sasuke waved her refusal off nonchalantly ' _I guess it's on to Plan B, have Dragon send word to the Leaf and get Tatsu to join me. He's a sensory type too and from what I know his sensory is even stronger than hers.'_

Karin slowly stepped back and locked the door.

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At the same time, Suigetsu and Hotaru freed the prisoners, but Suigetsu added the condition that they make sure everyone knew that Sasuke was the one who killed Orochimaru and freed them all.

They agreed without hesitation.

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Karin quickly locked the door "There."

Sasuke felt a bead of sweat drip down his forehead ' _Oh please don't tell me…'_

"I'll go." her knees were shaking.

' _Oh no, not again.'_

Cheeks reddening, Karin took off her glasses as she sat next to Sasuke "Look Sasuke, if you need me and if you want me to then I'll go ahead and follow you."

"What exactly are you up to? That sure was a quick change of heart."

"Well after thinking about it I realized just how boring it is guarding this place is." she ignored the jiggling of the doorknob.

"It's Suigetsu and Hotaru."

"Let's forget about those nuisances, alright Sasuke?"

"Karin… don't get so close."

"Look, what's wrong with the team being just you and me Sasuke?"

"Many, many things."

"I mean we don't really need that Suigetsu or that other girl do we?"

"This is the part of you I need, your cunning and cautiousness. But more than that, you're the second best sensory type I know of. From the first moment that I met you, I knew I'd be able to make good use of your power."

' _Yes… back then…'_ Karing thought back to when she and Sasuke first met, back when he was helping to round up some escaped prisoners ' _I'm… Sasuke… oh Sasuke… I…'_

Then Suigetsu finally hacked down the door with the Executioner's Blade "I hope that didn't chip the blade. Come on Sasuke, let's go. I assume Karin turned you down."

"So did I, until you left and she changed her mind so it looks like she's coming with us after all."

' _Well crap.'_

Karin quickly put her glasses back on "What? Who said I'm coming? I just- I mean- I just happen to be going in the same direction as you, that's all there is to it. Yeah, that's the only reason why I'm coming along."

"Well isn't that nice, now we can travel part of the way together."

"That's right, only part of the way."

"Alright then, let's go get this Jugo person." said Hotaru.

"Hold on, you want Jugo to join the team?!"

"Why should you care?" asked Suigetsu "You're only coming part of the way."

"You're right I don't care, but I can still ask. Come on, you want a piece of me?"

"Bring it."

"Enough." Sasuke got to his feet "Now let's go."

"...Yeah sure."

"Yeah whatever, let's go already." Karin grumbled.

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As they made their way out, Karin stared at Sasuke with hearts in her eyes ' _Sasuke Uchiha… his handsome and cool face is great too, but whenever I sense his chakra the feeling I get is just so enticing. Of all the hundreds, no thousands, of chakras I've encountered, his is by far the best. It just grabs hold of you.'_ then she ignored Hotaru and turned to Suigetsu with disgust ' _But then there's his.'_

Suigetsu noticed her glaring at him "What's up?"

"I hate your chakra, it's just gross."

"What was that? Well the same goes for you."

"Let's go." Sasuke spoke "We're heading for the northern hideout."

"Oh come on, more walking?" Suigetsu immediately whined "I'm at the end of my rope here."

Karin scoffed "We're talking about the northern hideout, if you're this weak now then you'll probably be killed the instant you get there."

"I only know if from seeing it on a map, I didn't know the place was gonna be that dangerous."

"The northern hideout is no ordinary hideout, it's used for human experimentation and it also houses all of the uncontrollable monsters the experiments produce."

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Tatsu suddenly found himself in the air, and landed on the ground with a thud "Why is it that you people always summon me in mid-air?"

"Blame the contract." a voice said dryly.

Tatsu looked up to see Lee standing before him "Why the hell did I give you the summoning contract again?"

"Because you didn't want someone like Kiba to get it."

"Oh yeah. Anyway, what's going on?"

"Lady Tsunade summoned us, apparently it's something big. Naruto and the rest are on their way too."

"Alright, let's go."

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Suigetsu let out a sigh "Say, aren't you guys tired? How about a little break?"

Karin scoffed "Please, you already took a break. Dammit Suigetsu, you're so lazy. Come on, we still have a long way to go."

"I thought you were only going part of the way with us, so what I do shouldn't concern you. Just go on ahead."

"For your information I remembered that I have business at the northern hideout too, and don't tell me where to go!" then she calmed down considerably "Suigetsu, why the hell are you following Sasuke around?"

"Sasuke's not the only one with a goal, I have reason to believe he can help me reach mine."

"And what about the girl?"

"Something about Sasuke saving her from the Akatsuki and following him to repay the debt I think. But really, I should be asking you the same question Karin."

"I may not know exactly what goals you two are after, but if you knew what Jugo is really like then you wouldn't want to recruit him."

"Well actually I do know him a little, I was forced to fight him once. He used some interesting powers and he was pretty strong, but I couldn't figure out what was going on in his head. I could never come around to liking him, I hear he actually asked Orochimaru to lock him up in that place. It tells you how crazy he really is."

"According to all of the rumors I've heard, Jugo has bizarre impulses but manages to control them. When he snaps, he becomes a homicidal maniac and his personality changes along with his looks."

"In other words he's an angry guy who loves to kill people, does that sum it up pretty well?"

"Even so, to Orochimaru Jugo's power was something very fascinating. Orochimaru developed an enzyme from the fluids in Jugo's body which allowed other shinobi to achieve the same state. You guys know what I mean don't you?"

"You mean Orochimaru's Curse Mark?" Hotaru guessed.

"Exactly, it originated with Jugo."

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Tsunade immediately rounded on Naruto and Ino when she saw them walk in "You're late! Why did it take so long for you too to get here!"

"Yeah, even I got here soon and I was hundreds of miles away training at Mount Hakurei." then Tatsu pointed to Danzo standing in the corner "Hell even Danzo got here before you did and he's always holed up underground like a vampire."

"See? Wait, what?"

Jiraiya tried to calm her down "Now now Tsunade."

Then Naruto finally came in after Ino and saw Jiraiya "No way, Pervy Sage? You're back in town again?"

"It's been awhile hasn't it Naruto?"

"It sure has, why the hell didn't you tell me you were coming back? I've got so much to tell you about."

"So I hear, at least the gist of it, not the details, but I hear you and Tatsu have gone through a lot of stuff recently."

"That's for sure, don't we always? Oh, and I finally got my collaboration jutsu to sink with Gamatatsu."

"You did? That's fantastic."

"What do you say, you wanna see my new jutsu?"

"Well since I'm here how could I ever pass up that offer?"

"Awesome! Oh and of course after that we'd better go get some ramen from Ichiraku right?"

"Sure! Tell you what? It's my treat."

"Alright! Let's go!" they actually started towards the door.

"Your new jutsu huh? I can't wait-"

"HOLD IT!" Tsunade thundered, stopping them in their tracks.

Tatsu held his hand out to Danzo "May I?"

"Do what you must." Danzo handed Tatsu his cane.

"Thank you." Tatsu then promptly whacked them both with it, beating Tsunade to the punch.

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Suigetsu dropped to the ground again "Can we rest a second?"

Karin rounded on him again "Suigetsu you keep taking breaks like every two minutes, we're almost at the hideout now come on! I bet it's that sword, it's too heavy for you isn't it? Just leave it behind, dammit!"

Hotaru noticed that Sasuke's attention was elsewhere "Is something wrong?"

"Where's the guard that's supposed to be on watch?"

"What?" Karin stopped and paused "He's gone, that is strange."

"Look." Hotaru pointed to where a guard limped towards them and collapsed.

Karin checked on him "He's from the northern hideout, he's still alive."

"What happened here?" asked Sasuke "Who did this to you?"

The guard opened his eyes "You… must be him… Sasuke Uchiha, right? Please… you must help us…"

"What happened?"

"The rumors… it started with the rumors… that Orochimaru had been killed… the prisoners all went wild and rioted… and the way it's going…" then he fell still.

' _He's dead. The only question is, who did it?'_

Then one of the prisoners appeared in the second level of his Curse Mark and quickly laid eyes on Sasuke "I know you, I'm sure I do."

' _This guy's already transformed into the second level of his Curse Mark. I'd better cut him down before he gets loose and hurts any innocents.'_ with one clean strike, Sasuke cut the prisoner down in an instant, causing him to revert back to his normal form "The northern hideout is just ahead, now let's go get Jugo and get out of here so we don't stay any longer than I feel is necessary."

"Right." Hotaru followed.

"Hey, hey wait up! Sasuke!" Karin chased after them.

Suigetsu looked at the body of the prisoner ' _Who the hell is this guy?'_

Karin paused to sense out the situation, only to see the prisoners in front of them "All of the wardens have been killed, and all of the inmates have broken out."

"At this rate we can't tell which one is Jugo right?"

"Karin, can you detect which one is Jugo amongst the prisoners?" asked Sasuke.

"What a huge pain. Fine, wait just a second." Karin paused "No, he's not among them."

"Then we don't have to worry about which ones we take down. But remember Suigetsu, don't kill any of them."

Suigetsu rolled his eyes "Boy you really are from the Hidden Leaf Village. You shouldn't hold back, and you should've killed that last guy too. You're so soft."

"Let's go."

"No." then Hotaru stepped forward "Please let me handle this. It's time I earn my place on this team." she formed a hand seal " **Water Clone Jutsu!"** 5 identical copies appeared " **Water Style: Water Shockwave!"** they each summoned a giant wave of water that collided with the prisoners.

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After about an hour of fighting off and constant refusals of help from Sasuke and the rest, Hotaru knocked out the last of the prisoners "There, that's taken care of."

"The keys." then Karin came out with the keys "I found the key ring."

Sasuke led the group down a hallway but stopped at a corridor "Karin, which way? Tell us."

"Hey Sasuke, quit bossing us around!"

Suigetsu groaned "Just calm down and figure it out would you, if you're so proud of your ability then use it."

"...It's that way." she pointed.

"Alright." and he left, with Hotaru following to make sure he didn't do anything stupid.

Karin stopped Sasuke from following them "Wait."

"What's wrong?" asked Sasuke.

"It's actually this way." she pointed in another direction "Now come on, let's go."

"What are you trying to get at Karin? Suigetsu and Hotaru both went the wrong way."

"Suigetsu has a big mouth and Hotaru just gets on my nerves, I don't like them. Come on." she grabbed his hand and led him forward.

"Let go, I can walk on my own."

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Hotaru was wondering exactly how long it would take for Suigetsu to realized that Karin had tricked him.

She didn't have to wait very long.

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Sasuke found himself outside a chained door with Karin "Is this it?"

"Yeah, Jugo is in this cell." Karin stepped forward and unlocked the door "Okay, I'm gonna open it." she reached for the handle.

Sasuke grabbed her by the arm "No, I'm going in first. Whatever happens, just be sure to stay behind me."

"Right." Karin stepped back.

' _Here we go.'_ Sasuke gripped the handle and slowly opened the door.

"BINGO YOU'RE DEAD!" Jugo charged forward immediately, slamming Sasuke straight into the wall.

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Naruto rubbed the bruise on his head "I swear you're as abusive as Sakura."

"That's a low blow." Tatsu pointed out "Sakura hit you every 10 seconds and screamed her head off at you for no good reason, I only hit you when you're acting like an idiot. Anyway, why did you guys call me back from Mount Hakurei? You know what I'm doing over there and it can't be interrupted by anything trivial."

Danzo promptly whacked him on the head with his cane "This is anything but trivial, this is a matter that affects the entire shinobi world."

"What, the Akatsuki are starting a war?"

"No. Not yet at least."

"Then what?"

"Allow me." then a masked figure appeared in a green flash.

"Oh great, you're here too Dragon. Alright, what's up?"

"We've been seeing some intel floating around on multiple channels, that's what we've brought you here to discuss."

"What sort of intel?" asked Naruto.

"That Orochimaru had been slain and that Sasuke was the one to do it."

Naruto's eyes shot wide "...What? Are you serious? Are you absolutely sure?"

"That's the story, and I checked with Sasuke himself and he confirmed it."

Then Naruto immediately returned to his usual self "I totally knew Sasuke could pull it off, that means that now he'll return to the Hidden Leaf Village right? Right?"

Danzo promptly whacked him on the head with his cane "So shortsighted, a ninja must see past what is right in front of them."

' _What's this wrinkly old prick going on about?'_

"Thank you king of whack a mole." Tatsu said dryly "Think about it for a minute Naruto, we both knew that Sasuke was planning to do this from the beginning."

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Jugo let out a maniacal laughter "No not just yet!" his left arm transformed slightly further and he fired a punch that let out a large shockwave.

Karin had to brace herself ' _Sasuke's chakra… it just transformed…'_

When the dust settled, Sasuke had partially transformed into his second level ' _That was close…'_

Jugo laughed in an insane way "So you're just another copy of me are you?! Still though it's pretty impressive you can pull off a partial transformation like that!" then he broke away "You know you're pretty good at using the Curse Mark."

Sasuke slowly stepped out of the hole in the wall "I didn't come here to fight you Jugo, the only reason I came here is so I can talk to you."

"...To talk? Seriously?"

"That's right Jugo, I came to take you out of here."

"You're gonna get me out of here?" then Jugo burst out laughing "Are you out of your mind? He's gone! Without _him_ with me, I can never leave this place."

' _Him? Who's he talking about?'_

"Now do you understand me?" Jugo thought back to the one person he could truly consider to be a friend ' _Kimimaro…'_

"Let me say it again Jugo, I have no intention of fighting you. I came to get you out of here, that's all there is to it. I want you to come with me."

"Don't you see? I can't leave this place, NEVER AGAIN!" Jugo charged.

Sasuke dodged the charge and took off running down the hallway.

Jugo charged at him again.

Sasuke easily dodged his attacks repeatedly, going up through the roof that was broken by one of Jugo's attacks.

"I won't let you escape!" Jugo charged after him.

"Damn, what's going on here?"

Karin looked to see Suigetsu and Hotaru emerge from the smoke "Oh great, you two."

"You really are a piece of work you know that? You tricked us back there."

"Oh give me a break Suigetsu, you got lost all on your own."

"We got lost because I followed _your_ directions."

"Listen I really resent that accusation, what would be the point anyway? What would I get out of tricking you like that?"

"Being alone with Sasuke." Hotaru said dryly "Isn't that right?"

"What?! Uh, no way! I don't want anything like that at all! I mean… shut it!"

Suigetsu rolled his eyes "Yeah whatever, anyway what happened while we were out wandering around?"

"Jugo just went wild and attacked."

"I see, so you two went looking for Jugo after all. And Sasuke?"

"He and Jugo went outside."

"Well Sasuke's tough, he can handle anyone, especially someone this powerful."

"Yeah, let's hope."

"Jugo's gotten even stronger then?"

"Well yeah."

"By the way, you said Jugo actually came to Orochimaru of his own free will."

"Yeah that's right."

"But why?"

"To be fixed probably."

"To be fixed?"

"To Jugo, Orochimaru's hideout is probably like some kind of rehabilitation facility where he can get better."

"But what did Jugo want to fix about himself?"

"Jugo's impulses are like an addiction, he can't do anything about it on his own. He simply wants to control his urge to slaughter."

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Jugo let out an insane laughter "You're dead!"

"You think so?" Sasuke took off running down the hall.

"Why can't you get it through your head?! I! Can! Never! Leave!" Jugo reflected on his first meeting with Kimimaro and how he promised to be Jugo's cage "I'll kill you! _Kimimaro… Why? Why did you die and leave me all alone?'_ he thrusted forward his fist.

Then Suigetsu appeared and blocked the attack with his Executioner's Blade "Sup?"

"Who are you?"

"You're using a different technique than before Jugo, not too bad. I like it."

"Suigetsu, stop it." Sasuke ordered.

Jugo grinned malicious "Yes of course, we've fought before Suigetsu! I remember now."

"You know, this guy really is dangerous Sasuke." Suigetsu noted.

"Sasuke?"

"Suigetsu, we didn't come here to fight." Sasuke reminded him "Just let me talk to him."

"I seriously doubt anything you say is gonna get through to him." Suigetsu pointed out "The only thing he understands if force!" and he brought down the blade.

"I'll kill you!" Jugo formed an axe on his hand and clashed with Suigetsu's blade.

"Stop it, both of you." Sasuke ordered.

' _No, don't stop! Kill each other off!'_ Karin mentally begged.

' _Okay, this isn't getting us anywhere.'_ Sasuke suddenly appeared between Jugo and Suigetsu and bound and bound them with snakes emerging from his sleeves "You make it hard to resist the urge to kill you, unless you want me too." he retracted the snakes back into his sleeves.

Suigetsu felt Sasuke's killer intent ' _He really was about to kill us just now.'_

Karin obviously didn't get the seriousness of the situation ' _Oh Sasuke, you're incredible!'_

Jugo's transformation subsided, and he freaked out and ran inside one of the cells, slamming the door in the process "Please, just hurry and lock the door!"

"Jugo I mean you no harm, I only came to free you." Sasuke's voice was soft and gentle "Please come out and join me."

"I think he's too scared." Hotaru commented.

"You're wrong, that's not it at all." Karin told her.

"What do you mean?"

"I don't want to kill anymore people." Jugo whimpered "But if I come outside of this place then I will, I'm begging you to just leave me alone! PLEASE!"

"Seems like he has a split personality."

"I told you, Jugo succumbs to his irrepressible murderous urges and it's like he's a whole other person." Karin told her "He loses control of himself but the truth is that he'd actually rather not kill."

"I don't know when I'll lose control and kill someone again so just put the lock on the door and leave me be!" Jugo pleaded.

"Sorry Sasuke, but I don't think Jugo's gonna work out." Suigetsu commented "We're gonna have to constantly watch our backs around him in case he starts to lose control."

"Who the hell are you people anyway? I just want to be left alone!"

"Jugo." Sasuke stepped forward, his voice as soft and gentle as he could make it "Orochimaru is dead and this hideout is completely destroyed, if you stay here then you'll die too."

"I don't care, at least then I can't kill anybody else."

"Listen to me Jugo, you don't have to worry. I will be your cage, I won't let you hurt anyone. I'm not like others, I'm actually capable of keeping you under control."

"There's nothing you can do, there was only one person who could subdue my impulses was Kimimaro. Without Kimimaro, I won't leave."

"I see."

"Wait, Kimimaro?" asked Suigetsu "You mean the guy from the Kaguya clan?"

"That's right. From what I'm aware of, out of all of the people here Jugo and Kimimaro were Orochimaru's favorites. They were kept together here in this hideout for the sake of live experimentation. He was strong too, he was the only person who could stop Jugo from rampaging without harming him. _That, and he nearly killed Tatsu three years ago from my understanding.'_

"But I thought Kimimaro was… isn't he…?"

"Yes." Sasuke turned back to the door "Jugo, it's only right for you to know. Kimimaro died for me, he's gone and he has been for about three years."

Jugo froze from behind the door "Wait a second, if he did that for you then that must mean that you're… Uchiha. Sasuke Uchiha."

"That's right."

"So you've come… Sasuke… Kimimaro said you would… _So that's what happened… Kimimaro…'_ Jugo slowly opened the door and walked out "Alright."

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Later, Sasuke stood with the four others outside the hideout "Good, now that I've gathered my perfect team here it is. This is my plan, my ultimate goal is to kill Itachi Uchiha of the Akatsuki."

"I thought you were gonna say that." Suigetsu commented.

"But to succeed I'll need help from all of you. It's your choice though, if you wish to leave then I'm not going to stop you. Karin, you said you had something else to do. Decide."

Karin blushed "Well on second thought, that other thing really isn't all that important."

Suigetsu rolled his eyes "Karin just be honest and tell the truth would ya? The only thing you're really interested in is being around Sasuke, isn't that right?"

"What?! No, that's just ridiculous! It's ridiculous how ridiculous that is! No, you're ridiculous!"

"What I am is right, I mean why else would you get all flustered like that! How rich. I know the truth you know, about how long ago you wanted-"

Karing cut him off by punching him in the face, causing his head to dissolve into water.

"I'm right."

"Suigetsu, don't get Karin so worked up." Sasuke told him "I told you guys to at least try to get along."

"Alright I will, I'm sorry Karin truly. Now look, you may hate it but I'm not going anywhere. I'm sticking like glue to Sasuke. At least I am until I can locate one of the seven Hidden Mist blades, I'm on the hunt for Kisame Hoshigaki's giant sword the Shark Skin Samehada."

Karin let out a groan "So you're collecting a bunch of big swords? How boring."

"What was that?"

"Suigetsu…" Sasuke warned.

"Yeah yeah I know, so Jugo, Hotaru, what are you guys gonna do?"

"Sasuke, Kimimaro said he considered you his reincarnation." Jugo told him "He sacrificed his life to protect you, so that's why I want to see what kind of shinobi you really are with my own eyes."

"And I owe you." Hotaru told him "You saved me and my master from the Akatsuki, joining you is the least I could do."

Sasuke nodded "Then it's all set. Now that we're a team we all move together as one, and from this point on we will be known as the Hebi. The Hebi has only one goal: Itachi Uchiha."

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Naruto rubbed his head "Will you guys stop hitting me?"

"Will you stop being an idiot and use your head?" Tatsu retorted dryly "It doesn't matter if Orochimaru is dead and Sasuke's mission is complete, Sasuke wants revenge on Itachi and he's not going to return until he gets it. You should've known this."

"But we have to move fast then, Operation Track Akatsuki is still going on right?"

Tsunade nodded "It is."

"Alright, then to find Sasuke we need to hunt down that member of the Akatsuki first. We need to track down Itachi Uchiha."

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At the same time, Itachi was waiting for Kisame to finish capturing Roshi, a Hidden Stone ninja and the jinchuuriki of the Four-Tails.

Then the Akatsuki leader contacted them and informed them about how Sasuke killed Orochimaru, then warned them about Sasuke's movements and about how he was most likely targeting Itachi.

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"Target a member of the Akatsuki who has the highest chance of leading us to Sasuke? Well I can certainly see the logic in that." Tsunade noted.

"But tracking someone as skilled as Itachi is a very delicate task." Danzo pointed out "The situation must be played to perfection." he received wary and untrusting looks from everyone in the room, but brushed them off.

"If we can take just one of the Akatsuki into custody then I wouldn't think that it would be too difficult for Ibiki to get information out of whomever we capture." Ino pointed out.

"I've already issued an order to that effect." Tsunade told her "Each team is to try and capture a member of the Akatsuki, and if they succeed then they'll bring that member in."

"As much of a drag as that'll be, it'll probably be difficult."

Naruto and the rest looked to see Shikamaru standing in the doorway with Kakashi "Shikamaru! Kakashi-sensei!"

"I'm afraid we won't be able to make them talk quite so easily." Kakashi pointed out "Even those we've already encountered have been far too dangerous, they couldn't even be considered to take into custody."

"So then what should we do Kakashi-sensei?"

"We have to be patient, keep looking until we find Itachi."

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Sasuke felt his sanity slipping with Karin and Suigetsu bickering "Enough of your squabbling you two, we're here. _Thank you Sage of the Six Paths.'_

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Itachi and Kisame arrived in an Akatsuki hideout to begin sealing the Four-Tails, the sealing now taking longer due to lacking members since the deaths of Hidan and Kakuzu.

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Sasuke led the team to a dark tunnel in an abandoned city "This is it."

"I've gotta say, this is one sketchy-looking place." Suigetsu commented.

"Let's go." Sasuke led them inside and down the tunnel.

"A hideout in a wasteland like this one huh? I've never heard of it."

"I didn't expect you to, this isn't one of Orochimaru's hideouts. This is a munitions store that the Uchiha clan used to use, here we'll outfit ourselves with supplies for battle, and in case of Jugo, some new clothes."

"This is like a maze, all the passages look the same and it must be easy to get lost in here."

"Man this place feels depressing and stifling." Karin muttered "And it's hard to breathe."

"I'm sorry to hear you feel that way." a voice meowed.

Sasuke looked back to see two cats dressed in ninja clothing "It's been a long time Denka and Hina."

"Well if it isn't our Sasuke boy, so tell us what can we do for you meow?"

"I brought my team here because we need weapons and medicine, along with some other supplies. We need to prepare for battle."

"Is that so meow?"

"Well what do you know, talking tanuki." Suigetsu knelt down and held out his hand "Come here little guys."

They hissed at Suigetsu, making him flinch.

"Damn."

"They're ninja cats, so be careful and respectful or they'll tear you apart." Sasuke warned.

"You wanna warn us about stuff like that before I stick my hand out like that?"

"I could, but it would be more fun to see you get mauled."

"So did you bring us a present meow?" asked Hina.

"Just like you ask every time." Sasuke tossed them a bottle of catnip "And that's why I carry catnip around."

"It's my favorite meow, follow me and I'll take you to Granny Cat."

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Granny Cat was, like the name suggests, an old woman with cat like features surrounded by cats. Lots of cats. And her granddaughter Tamaki.

Sasuke bowed his head "I am grateful Granny Cat."

"It's been too long since I've seen you, I'm sorry you're in such a hurry." Granny Cat noted.

"Yeah, there's something important I have to take care of."

"So it's true, you're still going to go after Itachi. To think that I've known the both of you since you were just wee little things, never did imagine it would come to this. Now you two are the only remaining Uchiha, and to think you must kill each other."

"I never imagined this either." Sasuke held out some money "We'll be going now, but I must thank you for all that you've done for us."

Granny Cat let out a side.

"Nothing fits him granny." Tamaki called from where she was trying and failing to find a shirt that would fit Jugo "Don't we have any larger clothes for him to try on around here?"

"Did you check in that box?"

"I did, they're all too small."

"Then just wrap him in that curtain over there, we're not running a clothing store here you know."

"But Granny Cat that's so rude, they are paying us you know."

Actually liking the idea, Jugo wrapped himself in the curtain "There."

Sasuke studied it for a moment, then nodded in approval "In some odd way, I find that very fitting."

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"Hunting Itachi to get to Sasuke?" Shikamaru repeated "Alright say we actually do manage to find Itachi, what then?"

"Well… I actually hadn't thought that far ahead." Naruto admitted, earning facepalms from everyone in the room, even Danzo.

"It's kind of a drag, but I think I've got an idea to fix that." he turned to where Danzo, Jiraiya and Tsunade stood "Can you spare a few minutes to hear me out?"

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As the Akatsuki were sealing the Four-Tails, Deidara was contemplating who he should target, narrowing it down to Naruto and Kakashi for losing his right arm, or Sasuke for eliminating Orochimaru when he himself wanted to do so.

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Shikamaru looked at the group assembled, consisting of him, Choji, Ino, Naruto, Kiba, Hinata, Kin and Kakashi "Alright, we're all assembled."

"Not too shabby, you've planned this well." Tatsu noted.

"I figured we'd have me and Kakashi as the lead strategists for this mission, with Ino and Kin providing support with their medical ninjutsu. Whatever we're lacking in physical strength we can make up for with Choji and Naruto, and Kiba and Hinata's tracking skills are crucial here."

"This is awesome, but wouldn't it be better with even more people?" asked Naruto.

"This isn't a matter of manpower you idiot, we're only after a maximum total of two targets so the equivalent of two teams will give us just the right amount of strength, speed, support, intelligence and flexibility necessary for this to work. Anymore and they'd see us coming from miles away, plus our mobility would be hindered."

"Restraining an enemy requires a lot more technique then just killing him, in selecting the members of these teams Shika thought it was wise to have each area of expertise as balanced as possible." Tatsu elaborated "I'd go too but I have other matters to attend to."

"Exactly."

"Well I can't see you doing much better then this group." Tsunade admitted.

"Thank you, it took me awhile to figure this out. I think we're ready to set out now." then he looked up at the rain "If only the weather didn't suck for setting out for a mission like this."

Naruto pointed forward "Come on guys, let's go already!"

Kiba smirked "I think the rain is perfect for cooling down anybody who's a bit too fired up at times like this."

"Let's make it official." Tsunade held out her hand "I hereby authorize the mission to locate and detain Itachi Uchiha! All of you be careful but be sure that you complete the mission!"

"Right!" and they set out.

 **A/N:**

 **For the record, it's specifically stated that Suigetsu is from the same clan as the Second Mizukage.**

 **I redesigned the Eight Man Squad in a way I thought made tactical sense:**

 **Two combat specialists (Choji and Naruto)**

 **Two medics (Ino and Kin)**

 **Two strategists (Kakashi and Shikamaru)**

 **Two trackers (Kiba and Hinata)**

 **Plus having all three on the team will allow use of the Ino-Shika-Cho formations.**

 **What do you think?**

 **My plans for Danzo have changed, I was gonna have Sasuke butcher him but after seeing his death I gained a new respect for him. The Five Kage Summit will take a big turn, he'll go out in a noble light. And for the record, what you guys say in your reviews will show me exactly who is and isn't mature enough to understand Danzo's character.**


	12. Art is an Explosion, Jiraiya the Gallant

Once out of the village, Shikamaru stopped the group "Alright guys, listen closely. Starting now, our objective is to find Itachi and take him into custody. The Akatsuki is rounding up the Tailed Beasts like the Kyuubi inside Naruto, and we know according to Dragon's intel that they've already located and captured the One-Tail from Gaara, along with the Two-Tails, Three-Tails, Five-Tails and Seven-Tails and are currently in the process of gathering the Four-Tails as we speak, leaving only numbers six, eight and nine. According to intel Dragon and Jiraiya obtained, it's already possible that they've infiltrated the Land of Fire and are trying to track Naruto down. Don't forget that Itachi was originally from the Hidden Leaf, three years ago he came back searching for Naruto and our sensei's and Lee fought him."

"So he's heading back to the Leaf this time as well?" Ino guessed "And how Sasuke should be close by?"

"That's my best guess, though we've gotta take something this delicate one step at a time. We'll use this as our center point and search in all directions with a radius of exactly 5 kilometers, if we don't find anything then we'll move the center point and search the next 5 kilometer radius. We'll keep repeating this strategy until it works."

"But if we spread out 5 kilometers then we can't use our wireless com links, and splitting up like that could be dangerous." Ino pointed out "Rules dictate a minimum of two man squads for patrols so if an enemy is-"

"Ino stop worrying so much, it can be such a drag."

"Look." Kakashi formed several hand seals " **Summoning Jutsu!"**

Then Pakkun appeared with the rest of Kakashi's ninja hounds "Our voices are able to reach much farther than any com link, also our noses can detect dangers so we'll protect you."

"Thanks Kakashi." then Shikamaru stepped forward "Alright, here's the team rosters for our patrol. Just to be on the safe side, I'm assigning two ninja hounds to each team member so no squabbling with them. Naruto, I'm looking at you." he sent two ninja hounds each to pair up with Kin, Choji and Ino.

"What about me though?" asked Naruto.

"You're a jinchuuriki and by extension that makes you a target for the Akatsuki, to protect you from a potential attack by the Akatsuki I'll be going with you along with a sensory type, that being Hinata."

Then Pakkun poked his head up from Kakashi's shoulder "And don't forget big bark Bull as well."

Naruto looked at Bull "Huh."

Hinata walked up to Naruto, looking nervous "Good to work with you Naruto."

"Yeah, you too."

"Being ninja hound users, Kakashi and Kiba will each only have one dog." Shikamaru went on with explaining the plan.

"So we're all set and ready to go." Kiba told him.

"Alright, now listen and listen well everybody. Your highest priority is to track the scents of Sasuke and Itachi, but if you encounter either one of them then simply verify their locations and return to this central point. This especially applies to you Naruto, we're not gonna let you run off on your own like a wild man again. Alright guys, spread out!" and they scattered.

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Sasuke led his group through the forest until he stopped them "Alright guys, it's time."

"Itachi Uchiha huh? I hope we can find him." Jugo muttered.

"Remember not to engage him if you find him, come and inform me first."

"Right." then Jugo, Hotaru and Suigetsu all scattered.

' _Yes!'_ Karin immediately latched onto Sasuke "Oh Sasuke I get to stay all alone with you, isn't that right?"

"Not even close, now hurry up and head out." Sasuke ordered bluntly.

"...Fine." very unsatisfied, Karin took off.

' _No way I'm letting that psychopath put her hands on me, my heart belongs to Kin and Kin alone. The question is, will she forgive me?'_

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Having been sent off on his own, with Jugo and Hotaru being a team, Suigetsu managed to track down Kyoya and Ginji, the accountant and barker, respectively, for Kakuzu.

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Jugo was checking with the animals to see if they could locate Itachi.

Hotaru was rather thrown off by Jugo's ability to communicate with animals.

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As he travelled with Shikamaru and the rest, Naruto had only one thing on his mind ' _Sasuke…'_

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Kin was travelling with Kakashi's ninja hounds Bisuke and Shiba.

"You know if you don't wipe that sullen look off of your face then you're just gonna scare off all of the boys." Bisuke commented.

Kin rounded on him "What was that?"

"The more you chase the farther they run, but you're the type of girl who just keeps charging ahead aren't you? Why don't you try pulling back for a change?"

"You've got a lot of nerve." then her eyes softened and saddened "Besides, it's not like that. Not with Sasuke and me."

"Hey Bisuke, just lay off the girl would you?" Shiba told him, only to receive a grunt.

"Sasuke should know how I feel he needs to know how everybody feels. I… We want him to come home safely, all of us, and that's all there is to it alright?"

"You can't draw his attention, so we'll just sniff him out then." Bisuke took a whiff, then stopped.

"Did you get something?"

"It's really faint, but I detected Sasuke's scent."

"Wait, really?"

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This led them to wandering through a nearby town.

Kin looked around to find any sign of Sasuke "Anything?"

"Well I can't pinpoint it, but it's getting stronger with every step we take." Bisuke told her.

Kin looked around for awhile but nearly bumped into someone, forcing Shiba to grab her cloak.

"Hey what the hell are you doing? Guard yourself or he'll be onto us long before we find him. Be very cautious."

"Right." they continued on.

"He's close. Well Kin, can you sense Sasuke close by at all?" asked Shiba.

"Hold on…" Kin looked around, not noticing as Karin walked past them in the exact opposite direction.

"It's no good, the scent's receding now and fast."

Karin looked back, but saw no sign of Kin or the dogs ' _I'd given a thorough once over, but I don't sense any worrisome chakra.'_ she took off her glasses ' _Maybe I'll go back to Sasuke, the others probably aren't back yet so I'll have him all to myself!'_

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At the same time, having been scouting from above, Deidara and Tobi had locked onto their target, but Deidara neglected to mention whether he had chosen to go after Naruto or Sasuke.

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Shikamaru, along with the rest, noticed something behind them "Naruto, Hinata, you guys know what to do right?"

"Yeah." Naruto fired off some shuriken, forcing the hooded figure following them to reveal himself, shocking them "You!"

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Sasuke looked back into the bushes "I know you're there, now show yourselves. Who are you?"

A shadowy figure stepped out.

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The figure revealed part of his face "So you sensed me coming did you?"

Shikamaru's eyes narrowed and hardened "Kabuto Yakushi, it's pretty brash and reckless of you to approach us of your own free will like this."

"Please calm yourself Shikamaru, I didn't come to fight. I'm just here to have a little chat with Naruto, that's all."

"So you want to chat do you?" Naruto stepped forward and prepared formed the hand seal to fire off some Air Bullets "You're not escaping this time Kabuto, we're taking you in whether you like it or not. I bet you'd know Kabuto, we're Sasuke right now?"

"You're still all about Sasuke aren't you?"

"They say that Sasuke killed off Orochimaru a while back, is that true?"

"Oh yeah, it's true alright. But more importantly, I brought you a present, a little something I thought you might like." he reached into his robe.

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Sasuke's eyes narrowed "I know those robes, you're with…"

Then Tobi emerged from the trees "So you're Sasuke huh? You really do look just like Itachi."

Sasuke's eyes hardened.

"Scary!" Tobi ran back into the woods.

"Where's your partner?"

"Right here!" Deidara dove down from above and fired two gigantic C1 clay dragons, colliding with Sasuke in an explosion while he himself landed safely on the ground "Okay that's taken care of."

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Kabuto held out a book "Here."

"What's that?" asked Naruto.

"Intelligence our organization managed to gather regarding the Akatsuki."

"So what about it?"

"It's yours now, I'm letting you have all of it."

Skeptical, Shikamaru stepped forward "Orochimaru is dead now so you're trying to negotiate some kind of deal with the Leaf Village, is that it?"

"No, I'm not so foolish as to believe that the Hidden Leaf would negotiate with the likes of me."

"Then start talking, the Akatsuki aren't after you so why would you help us and give us information to use against them?"

"It's simply a gift for Naruto, a token of my gratitude. After all, the Akatsuki is pursuing you."

Naruto's eyes narrowed "Gratitude?"

"Yes that's right, when Lord Orochimaru died I lost sense of my identity again of who I was. I never knew my parents or homeland, the enemy took me into their custody when I was very little. I was used as a spy since I was a child, moving around from country to country and village to village. For a long time the idea of home was alien to me, until I became a disciple under Lord Orochimaru. But now it's complete again." he threw the book to Naruto's feet "The pain of not knowing who I am, of being without an identity, you understand it well don't you Naruto?"

"I don't want to understand anything that comes out of you."

"Are you sure? Who are you really? Are you Naruto Uzumaki or are you the Kyuubi? I know you were shunned and despised in the past, you must've questioned your identity, who you were meant to be. But you had faith in your strength and told yourself that you were Naruto Uzumaki, you forged your own identity and in doing so you overcame the cold glares meant for the Kyuubi."

"What is he doing? What was he want with Naruto?" Hinata whispered.

Shikamaru shook his head "I can't figure it out either, whatever game he's playing it's really complex."

Kabuto turned his head away "That's why you're confident, that's why you have no doubts at all about your identity, why you have friends who accept you so readily. But my story is different, instead of moving beyond Lord Orochimaru I stubbornly kept clinging tightly to his power. Now I have a much better idea of how you must have felt Naruto." he lowered his hood and removed his glasses "It made me see, and so I decided that I would try and be like you. That's why my path is clear to me." he turned to face them, revealing that part of his face had become unnaturally similar to that of Orochimaru, shocking them "I'm going to use what I was able to absorb from Lord Orochimaru, to become a better stronger Kabuto Yakushi. I will find a new identity and you've given me a clue as to how. That's why I'm so grateful to you Naruto. Lord Orochimaru is a symbol of renewal, he will live inside of me as a reminder of what I must overcome."

Naruto was appalled "You really absorbed someone like him into your own body?"

"That's right, I took a part of Lord Orochimaru's corpse after Sasuke defeated him and then I simply grafted that piece right onto my own body." he lifted his cloak, revealing his transformed arm "And since then you won't believe the life force it's given me, every day I can feel it steadily consuming my entire body. It's amazing."

"Unbelievable." Shikamaru muttered ' _Wait a minute…_ Hinata."

"Right." Hinata studied Kabuto with her Byakugan ' _It's already taken over ⅓ of his body.'_

"I have to fight desperately just to avoid being completely subsumed by it." Kabuto continued maliciously "Every day I feel my will to surpass Lord Orochimaru reaffirmed to me."

"So is that everything you came here to say?" asked Naruto "Well you know what Kabuto, you can keep on fighting him in a jail cell when we drag your scaley ass back to the Leaf! **Wind Style: Air Bullets!"** he fired off some blasts of air from his mouth."Naruto keep him busy!" Shikamaru appeared behind him " **Shadow Grab Jutsu!"** he grabbed Kabuto by the cloak with his shadow "Got him."

"Alright!"

"Behind you!" Hinata cried out suddenly.

"Dammit!"

Kabuto leapt back, laughing wildly "In time I will be able to gain complete control over all of Lord Orochimaru's powers and abilities, and when that happens I will fight you again Naruto. But that's later, my first priority is to avenge him, and therefore my priority is Sasuke."

"Hold up, what the hell are you planning to do with him?"

Kabuto merely formed a hand seal "Until next time." and he disappeared.

"Dammit."

Shikamaru stared hard at the book Kabuto left behind ' _What's his angle?'_

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Deidara stared at the sight of the explosion in front of him and smirked "We did it, we just took down Sasuke!"

"Nicely done Deidara." Tobi praised.

"Is that so?" when the smoke cleared, Sasuke stood unharmed, having summoned a lightning shield using the power of Raijin.

"...Yeah, real nice."

"Quiet!" Deidara barked.

"I guess he's even stronger than we thought, huh?"

"Just imagine, Orochimaru and my man Sasori being killed by a brat like him. I still can't believe it."

Sasuke dematerialized his shield and activated his Sanda Sharingan ' _This guy was partnered up with Sasori back when Gaara was captured, so is he looking for revenge?'_

"Just look at the way he's glaring at us Tobi."

"Raring to go huh Deidara?" Tobi guessed "I guess you'll have to apologize to Itachi later."

"Yeah like I give a rat's ass what he thinks."

Sasuke stepped forward, itching to grab his sword "I'm giving you one chance blondie, tell me where Itachi Uchiha is and I'll let you and your partner go and we don't have to shed blood like this."

That just pissed Deidara off and brought back some bad memories "Sharingan huh? _And with that weird lightning power Zetsu told me about._ No doubt about it, you're Itachi's kid brother alright. You were only able to kill my man Sasori and Orochimaru thanks to your Uchiha blood, you were lucky to be born into that family and nothing more."

"Is that so?" Sasuke blitzed forward.

' _He's fast!'_ Deidara leapt back onto a tree branch.

Sasuke quickly cut Tobi through with his katana "One down, now then mr loudmouth you're going to tell me everything you know about Itachi." he looked back to see Tobi getting up like nothing happened ' _I know I cut through him, so how come he isn't even hurt? That's one I've gotta look out for.'_

"What the hell are you doing Tobi? Don't let your guard down just because he's a kid!"

' _And blondie there doesn't seem surprised.'_

"His teleportation jutsu is too fast for both of us!"

' _Who is this one?'_

Deidara stuck his hands in his clay pouches ' _Let me size him up with some chakra level C1 explosives first._ Tobi, stay back!" he threw the mini spider bombs, and once Tobi had gotten out of the way, he prepared to detonate them.

Sasuke fired off some Chidori Senbon, pinning them to the surrounding trees or the ground.

Deidara formed a hand seal.

"Time out partner!" Tobi cried "Don't blow them up yet!"

' _Dammit!'_

"Behind you, look out!"

' _What?!'_

' _Now!'_ Sasuke aimed an attack from behind.

Deidara threw one last bomb he had stowed in his hand, catching both of them in the explosion.

"Deidara!" Tobi cried out "He may have been strict but he was a good partner, I'll never forget him!"

"Okay, will you just shut up already!" Deidara emerged and skidded to a stop in front of him.

"Huh? Oh hey, you're still alive."

"Don't sound so surprised?"

Sasuke emerged unharmed and studied Deidara ' _He can produce clay explosives from those weird mouths on his hands.'_

' _I somehow managed to escape hidden in the bomb blast, good thing I kept the chakra level at C1.'_ Deidara stuck his hands in his pouches ' _He's certainly fast on his feet, how about this?'_ he held out his hands and upd the ante by creating some ugly clay dolls "I think I'll play with you for a bit." he sent the dolls forward.

"Oh come on, now you're just insulting me. It's a joke." Sasuke slashed through one of the dolls without using any chakra, only for his sword to get stuck, forcing him to rely solely on taijutsu and cut off some parts with lightning chakra channeled into his hand, only for the bisected parts to turn into smaller dolls.

"Not done yet!"

"Neither am I." grabbing and freeing his sword, Sasuke began cutting down the dolls bit by bit, only for them to reform as smaller dolls the more he cut them down.

' _It's almost time… now!'_ Deidara detonated some of the dolls, engulfing Sasuke in the explosion.

"No way!" Tobi realized.

"What?" then Deidara noticed a surge of lightning ' _One of those weird Lightning Clones or whatever.'_

"Just as I thought."

"Shut up!"

"He's clearly the smart one." Sasuke appeared from the trees.

"Shut up!" Deidara sent more of the dolls at him.

Sasuke was forcing across the trees, evading the blasts as they went off, resorting to slashing through branches in an attempt to evade them, until one caught his leg, allowing the rest to glomp onto him before detonating in a fiery explosion.

"How's that? I guess he's not so great after all." then he noticed the surge, indicating that it had been another Thunder Clone.

"Yep, I knew it." Tobi noted.

"Look Tobi, just whose side are you on here anyway?!"

"The side that's right." Sasuke emerged from the trees unharmed.

' _So he double substituted with those Lightning Clones of his, well he's clearly very skilled, which means that my best bet is to switch to C2.'_ he stuck his hands in his pouches and smashed them together, and he and Tobi were engulfed in a cloud of smoke. When it subsided, it revealed a massive clay dragon.

"Ta-da!" Tobi called "Presenting one of my partner's signature pieces! His specialty, the C2 dragon!"

Deidara leapt onto the head of the dragon "You know what to do Tobi?"

"Yes siree partner, we're going with _that_ right?"

"Yep, that is the plan." Deidara formed a hand seal, and from the mouth of the dragon spilled dozens of C1 explosives.

' _It can generate explosives.'_ Sasuke noted ' _For now I have to assume the gigantic one can become an explosive as well.'_

"I'm counting on you Tobi."

"Yes sir!" Tobi saluted him "I won't let you down!"

' _It's got wings, so it most likely can fly too. That's not good.'_ Sasuke charged forward.

"Here he comes! Now let's really show him, let's show him the power of your popart partner!"

"Pop is dead, my art is super flat!" Deidara formed a hand seal, sending out a miniature dragon and had it circled behind Sasuke, detonating on him from behind.

Sasuke managed to escape at the last second ' _This one was different, it was like some sort of guided missile. Wait, what happened the stupid one with the mask? Well never mind that right now, first things first I have to take care of blondie here.'_ Sasuke charged forward, a Chidori flaring into life from his sword and extending forward in the form of a blade.

Deidara flew up, causing it to miss ' _So his range is only about 6 meters is it?'_

Sasuke reluctantly retracted his attack ' _Dammit, he must've figured out my limit.'_

"You copied that off of Kakashi didn't you? But I will give you credit for that change in chakra form, that wasn't half bad." Deidara formed a hand seal, and another dragon formed in the big one's mouth "This one's got a little bit more bite than the last bunch. Blow him to bits!" he sent it forward.

Sasuke dodged at the last second, escaping from the explosion unharmed.

' _Man he is fast.'_

Sasuke stepped on something ' _What?'_

' _Got him!'_

Sasuke was suddenly engulfed in an explosion.

"That oughta do it." then Deidara looked further "Oh come on!"

Sasuke stood in the center of a crater in the second level of his Curse Mark, wings of lightning crackling on his back.

"That's Orochimaru's Curse Mark, and I didn't realize he could use that lightning manipulation to make wings too. _So he dodged my attack by flying upwards.'_

Then Tobi suddenly poked his head out of the ground "Partner I've set up all the clay land mines, we're good to go!"

"Good job Tobi, now just stay out of the way!"

' _Guided missile attacks from above and landmine attacks from below.'_ Sasuke noted ' _They're not making it easy for me.'_

"This C2 assault is brought to you by the linked attacks of the landmines that restrict your ground movement, and the painful missile attacks from the air. You're completely surrounded by landmines in the ground all around you." Deidara pointed out "Step on one, even touch it and it'll go off."

' _So he plans to fire that guided missile directly at me, and he's flying just outside of my maximum attack radius.'_

"I see that your leg is injured, I wonder if you can dodge my attack now." Deidara formed a hand seal "This next one's gonna be huge."

Sasuke's lightning wings twitched.

"You can't escape!" Deidara fired a large clay dragon and detonated it, resulting in an electrical explosion.

Sasuke's Raijin katana flew out of the blast radius and fell to the ground, the blade piercing the soil while still crackling with electricity, while Sasuke himself had lost one of his lightning wings.

"You shouldn't have used your wings as shields. You can't fly anymore, not with one wing."

"You're so awesome Deidara!" Tobi cheered from the sidelines.

"Now to settle this at last." Deidara formed a hand seal and summoned an even bigger attack.

Sasuke looked up ' _Now!'_ he pulled on some steel wire.

Deidara looked back to see two giant shuriken, but he dodged them "Like that could get me!" he sent the attack forward.

Sasuke leapt out of the way.

' _Go ahead and leap, there's no place to land except on a landmine and that will stop you for sure.'_

Sasuke then proved him wrong by landing on the grip of his sword.

' _Dammit, he made a foothold!'_

Sasuke leapt off and fired a Chidori Sharp Spear, piercing the dragon's wing.

' _He got me?'_

Sasuke then severed the dragon's wing entirely "An eye for an eye, or in this case it's a wing for a wing."

' _He deliberately thrusted his blade into the ground to check for landmines and to create a foothold for himself. The length of the sword combined with the height he can jump with just one wing was just enough to get him in range. Wait, this spot… of course, with that attack he lured me into position right above his blade, the shortest distance his chakra blade could reach.'_ then he suddenly got pinned down to his clay dragon by two more shuriken ' _I can't move! No, I'm headed toward the land mines!'_ his dragon hit the ground, resulting in all of the landmines going off all at once.

" **Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"** under the cover of the smoke, Sasuke launched a fireball to propel himself back into the trees, landing safely on a branch as he retracted his Curse Mark and returned to his normal state ' _Okay, maybe this Curse Mark isn't all bad. After all, without it I doubt I would've made it out of that unscathed.'_

Tobi looked and saw Deidara's cloak fly out of the blast "You did die a death by bombing after all, Deidara you fool!"

Then a pissed off and minorly wounded Deidara emerged on a clay bird "How many times do I have to tell you to shut up Tobi?"

"What, you're still alive?"

"Why do you sound so disappointed?"

Sasuke sighed ' _Obstinate, there's no other word I can think of to describe it.'_

' _I managed to free my arms from those giant shuriken at the last second, but still…'_ he sent a furious glare at Sasuke ' _You… You damn brat… Those eyes… Those same damned eyes…'_ he reflected on how he had been defeated and humiliated by Itachi and his Sharingan, resulting in him joining the Akatsuki ' _Don't you mess with me… I'm better than you are! My talent is absolute, my art can't be beat! I know I'm better than you, I will not lose to you! Not to such a… such a…'_ he gritted his teeth so hard his lip began to bleed, and he swallowed some of his detonating clay himself, then formed a hand seal "I've saved the best for last, this will kill you! Tobi run, now !"

Tobi did so, very frantically "Oh no, it's the C4 Karura!"

"That's right, the technique that will end your life!" Deidara spat out all of the clay he swallowed, sculpting all of it into a large clay version of himself.

Sasuke's eyes widened ' _That's as intimidating as it is ugly.'_

' _I set this jutsu aside especially to kill Itachi, but oh well.'_

Sasuke looked back at the nearby city ' _Don't tell me that thing is a bomb too. The blast radius must be massive, if it goes off it might kill all of the civilians in that city. Wait, is it looking right at me? I don't know if I'll make it, but I can't let him detonate that thing!'_ he charged forward.

"Oh come on, don't tell me you think a direct attack will work. Have you really become so desperate? That won't work, especially not in the face of my C4 Karura!" he formed a hand seal, and the doll ruptured.

' _Did he misfire? No, that isn't it.'_ then the horrible realization hit him ' _That's-!'_

"That's right, I win! Art is an explosion!"

Sasuke suddenly found himself disintegrating "Impossible!"

"Sublime isn't it?"

"This can't… be happening!" Sasuke's entire body completely disintegrated, mere inches away from reaching Deidara's face.

Deidara let out an insane victorious laughter "This is my greatest masterpiece!"

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Things grew quiet.

Tobi finally stopped a safe distance away "Okay, that should do it. Geez the C4 Karura, microscopic nano-sized explosives. When the giant Deidara ruptures, the blast wave disperses explosives too small for the eye to see, scattering them all over the atmosphere. The mini bombs then implant themselves within the bodies of any and all creatures that inhale them, and when they explode the multiple cellular level explosions destroy their victims from the inside out. A fearsome jutsu indeed."

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Deidara looked around and smirked "I have Itachi to thank for this." then it finally sunk in and he laughed maniacally "I've won! I've won! My art has won this fight!" then he suddenly felt something and froze ' _No, it can't be…'_

"I know what you're thinking and yes, it can be." now in the second level of his Curse Mark, Sasuke appeared and blasted Deidara through the chest from behind with a Chidori through the chest "Looks to me like you've used up all of your chakra with that last jutsu, and now you don't have enough strength left to react fast enough."

"Those eyes…"

"I've gotta admit, that technique is formidable. Your explosives are way too small for the eye to see yes, but my Sharingan is able to see chakra as different colors. Your mini explosives filled with chakra were visible to me, clear as day as a large cloud of smoke. I could also tell that you took great care to remain hovering just outside the range of the nanobombs. Since I could see the explosives, escaping was easy."

"But I just saw you die from my C4 with my very own eyes."

"A basic Sharingan genjutsu."

"I see, so what's what it was."

"I made sure to avoid hitting any of your vital organs, now tell me where Itachi is."

"Like I said, I've gotta remember to thank Itachi." then Deidara suddenly burst up from below and grabbed Sasuke's ankle.

Sasuke looked at the Deidara he had pierced ' _A clay clone, I should've figured as much.'_

"Do you see now? I anticipated your genjutsu, you're just like Itachi and I never fall for the same trick twice. _Yes, it all began the day I fought Itachi, the day he humiliated me and insulted my art. Since that day I've trained my left eye to counter the Sharingan, as if I wouldn't find a way to counter such a powerful genjutsu._ And now it's over, how about a direct C4 attack?" he unleashed another C4 from his mouth, trapping Sasuke within.

Sasuke found the clay wrapping around his arms and legs ' _Dammit!'_

"Now who's the one running out of chakra huh? It seems you don't have enough left to free yourself!"

Sasuke noticed the explosives entering his body.

Deidara broke off from the clay bird "The inside of this model is just like the other one, full of invisible C4 bombs." he formed a clay bird with the mouths in his palms ' _Dammit, molding clay hurts now. And even worse, I used up my chakra with that last attack. What a poor piece.'_ but he threw it anyway.

Sasuke broke out of the C4, a Raijin-powered Chidori crackling in his hand.

"What will you do now, huh?" Deidara formed a hand seal.

Sasuke formed a hand seal of his own, and another set of lightning wings crackling into life on his back, and he charged forward.

' _He's channeled the last of his chakra into that Lightning Blade._ That Lightning Blade attack won't reach me at this distance, I'm out of your range! It's over!" he formed a hand seal right before he fell into the trees, and when his vision cleared he saw something disintegrating from his attack and assumed it to be Sasuke "I've won! I really did it! My art triumphed, as I knew it would!" then he suddenly froze, feeling a familiar sensation ' _No… No way… not again…'_ he looked back, only for his worst fears to be confirmed.

"Gotcha!" Sasuke charged from behind and slugged Deidara right in the face, sending him tumbling forward.

Deidara sat up, his mind racing ' _What is going on here? That was no genjutsu, but then that means that… How? How did he disarm the C4 bombs?'_ then he noticed something.

Sasuke had electricity surging all across his body.

"But how? Don't tell me that you… you figured it out."

"Actually yeah, I did a while ago. When facing someone with the Sharingan, you really should be more discrete when you're weaving your hand signs because no matter how fast you are these eyes can read them like a book. All of your jutsu so far have used earth style signs. My Chidori and Raijin-based attacks all use lightning style chakra, so you do the math from there."

"So you knew about it all along then? Then when you attacked me with that Lightning Blade…"

"Earth style is vulnerable to lightning, I knew that if I used it then the Lightning Blade would diffuse then it would diffuse your bombs. It's their achilles heal isn't it?"

"Damn you… Of course. The Lightning Blade wasn't intended for me, it was for yourself. You used it to deactivate the C4 in your body."

"That's right, but the downside to that is that it left my body in really bad shape. By the way, my jutsu is actually called Chidori. Kakashi is the one who uses the Lightning Blade, not sure where the name comes from though."

' _He figured out its weakness so quickly and with perfect accuracy._ When did you realize?"

"I figured it out after those land mines went off, I knew then but I had been realizing it from the very start. Early on I countered your first attack with Chidori Senbon, I noticed that some of the bombs you created exploded but some didn't. That's when I first formulated my hypothesis."

"Your hypothesis?"

"That time the only explosive you actually detonated was the one you threw back at me again, the one you threw when you tried to evade my counterattack. But all of the other explosives that I blocked with my Chidori Senbon didn't detonate, though it was possible that you purposely chose not to trigger them since they fell too close to where your partner was so perhaps you disabled them."

"I see, so in other words you couldn't tell if your Chidori stopped them from exploding or if it was me. Yes, you checked your theory by testing it on the landmine."

"Exactly, if they detonate automatically then they're not under your control and if that was the case then I could confirm if my lightning style jutsu could diffuse your earth style bombs."

Deidara felt the realization hit him.

"That's right, that time I stuck my sword into the ground. I wasn't trying to find a place in between the landmines, I was testing my hypothesis by stabbing my lightning sword through a mine that I knew was there."

"But how could you? How could you ever pinpoint the location of the landmines like that?"

"Like I told you before, these eyes see chakra as different colors. Didn't you hear me the first time?"

"You could see where the landmines were? _So then he wasn't just trying to find a safe place to stand, he was a step ahead and seeing if he could disarm my detonating clay._ But what would you have done if the mine had stayed active and gone off?"

"Well there were only two outcomes, fortunately I had a backup plan just in case but I guess I didn't need to test it out."

' _He still has other jutsu…'_

Sasuke slowly walked forward.

Deidara tried to get to his feet, but collapsed again, so he resorted to firing off two more clay snakes.

The lightning chakra running through Sasuke's body disarmed them, forcing Deidara to let go before he was electrocuted, while Sasuke himself fell to his knees in exhaustion.

"Dammit… you sure can talk tough, but you're on your last legs too aren't you? Your chakra took a big hit didn't it? I still win, I have some detonating clay left." he got no response that came across as frantic "Are you still calm? Shouldn't you be worried at least a little? Come on. You're about to be killed by my art." then he finally lost it "That's what annoys me the most, about both you and your brother! You think you're just so cool! Those eyes, those overconfident eyes make me so sick! Your eyes always judging me and my art, I'll never forgive them for that! You have absolutely no respect for my art, I can tell that you don't! I can never forgive those eyes that just ignore my art!"

"...I honestly couldn't care less about all of that, I had my fill of art back when I was fighting Sasori before. Besides, all I want is for you to tell me where I can find Itachi." to add insult to injury, Sasuke deactivated his Sanda Sharingan.

"So you've retracted that strange blue Sharingan of yours, do you mean to tell me you really take me that lightly?!" having reached the limit of his patience and sanity, Deidara ripped off his shirt and removed the stitches on his chest, revealing a large beast-like mouth, which he then fed the last of his detonating clay, causing the explosive chakra to manifest itself through his veins, flowing through his body "This is my ultimate art, this time I'm going to detonate myself!"

' _Okay, it's official. He's insane.'_

"In death I shall become art itself! No one has seen an explosion like this! One that shall leave behind a scar on the very earth itself and then I shall receive more admiration for my art than anyone has ever seen before! _Sorry Tobi, but this is how it has to be. I know I was a dick to you, but thank you for always being there for me, my friend._ But while I shall be admired you'll most definitely be dead!"

' _Dammit, my leg is broken. I can't run from it.'_

"This explosion will cover 10 kilometers, you can't run away from this one! Tremble! Be afraid! Recoil in despair! Cower in awe, and cry your heart out! Because my art…"

Sasuke formed a subtle hand seal ' _Please let this work, please let this work!'_

"IS AN EXPLOSION!" and with that, he detonated in a white light, incinerating everything in the surrounding area.

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Shikamaru looked at Naruto "What do you think Naruto? Do you know what it is?"

"Yeah." Naruto gripped his fist "I recognize this chakra, it's that Akatsuki, the one with the clay bombs that kidnapped Gaara. I don't know what he's trying to pull, but I think we'd better go check it out.

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' _Sasuke, no… it can't be…'_ having seen the blast from the town, Karin tried to sense out Sasuke's chakra, to no avail ' _I can't sense Sasuke's chakra anymore!'_

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Suigetsu noticed it as well ' _That blast is near our rendezvous point.'_ he watched as the blast finally dissipated ' _I'd better hurry.'_ and he rushed to the sight of the blast.

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Having witnessed the battle and its conclusion, Zetsu informed the Akatsuki about Deidara's death and how Tobi and Sasuke had most likely suffered the same fate.

The Akatsuki leader, Pain, advises all of the remaining members to try and mourn Deidara's passing.

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Despite Kisame offering his condolences for Sasuke's death, Itachi appeared absolutely certain that Sasuke was still alive.

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Hotaru followed Jugo to a spot by a river "Are you sure this is the spot?"

"Positive, this is where the birds told me to go." then Jugo looked up "There!"

Hotaru looked up and saw a ball of lightning in the air, which then dissipated, revealing Sasuke falling towards the ground "I've got him! **Water Style: Liquid Platform!"** she formed a water platform, gently lowering Sasuke to the ground.

Slowly, Sasuke opened his eyes "You… You both came…"

"You're a mess Sasuke, who in the world were you fighting?"

"Someone I underestimated, the only reason I survived that blast was because I rose my Thunder Dome at the last second."

"There you are!" then Karin and Suigetsu showed up "I thought you'd be here, your chakra suddenly disappeared so I wondered what happened. Did you transport yourself or something?"

"You protected yourself with Raijin's power in the form of the Thunder Dome, a ball of lightning that blocks and cancels out any attacks that aren't wind-based, so why are you so beat up?"

"Just before I rose the shield, I was hit by the blast wave." Sasuke told her "That Akatsuki, he was a lot stronger than I expected. _Then again, since he was paired up with someone as powerful as Sasori I should've seen that coming.'_

' _Even all cut up and bruised, Sasuke's still pretty sexy.'_ Karin started getting thought so dirty that even Jiraiya wouldn't be able to stand them.

"Well in any case, you'll need some time to rest and heal." Hotaru insisted "Isn't that right Karin?"

Then Karin's tsundere-instincts kicked him "How pathetic, I can't believe you're the man who killed Orochimaru!"

"Orochimaru had already been weakened to begin with, that's all I'm going to say about that. But in the meantime Hotaru, there's something I want you and Jugo to do."

Hotaru blinked "What is it?"

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"Guys!" Naruto, Shikamaru and Hinata reached the sight of the blast, only to find everyone else already there "You guys, what the hell happened here?"

"There's evidence Sasuke was here until just before we arrived." explained Ino.

"What?"

"It's scent is faint, but he's definitely here." Kiba told him "Also, I could detect several other scents as well."

"What does that mean?"

"By the look of the crater, there was a fight here."

Shiba sniffed around "Thought so, as I suspected one of the other scents is identical to the one I detected in the city. Sasuke isn't travelling by himself now, he has four companions travelling with him as well. They must be his accomplices."

"So Sasuke's probably formed a team." Kakashi guessed "Also, I know that one of the six scents here belongs to Deidara, a member of the Akatsuki."

"But wasn't he the blond guy who blew himself up and got sent to another dimension by your Mangekyo Sharingan?" asked Ino.

"I thought so, but it seems he faked his own death to escape."

"I figured as much." Shikamaru commented "Tatsu told me what happened, but I had my doubts he was actually dead. I wouldn't think a member of the Akatsuki would be killed so easily."

"Well moving on from that, the Akatsuki operate in two man teams, so there should me three left. And Sasuke is in a five man team."

Naruto was losing his patience "I don't care how many there are, let's just hurry up and track down Sasuke's scent."

Pakkun shook his head "Sorry I'm afraid we can't do that."

"What the hell do you mean we can't?"

"The trail goes cold here." Kakashi told him.

"And what does that mean?"

"Either Sasuke was killed in that blast or he somehow managed to escape before the blast could kill him."

"It was probably the latter." Kiba told them "I've made my sense of smell even keener than that of a dog, I think I found Sasuke."

"Close, but not quite."

Ino and Kiba both recognized the voice and turned to see Hotaru approach them "You're…"

"It's been awhile you two, glad to see you're doing well."

"You're Hotaru, what are you doing here?"

"Sasuke sent me with a message."

"You're with Sasuke?" Naruto grabbed her by the shoulders "Where is he? Is he alright?"

"He was injured and he's suffering from a minor case of exhaustion, but he'll be fine with a few days of rest."

"Can you take us to him?"

"I'm afraid not, Sasuke only sent me here to give you this." she handed Naruto a scroll, then turned to Kakashi "He also wanted me to give you this." she handed him a scroll too "Now then, if you'll excuse me." and she disappeared into a puddle of water.

"What the hell?"

"A water clone." Kakashi looked at the contents of his scroll and sprouted a tic mark "You think he'd know how to show respect."

"What's wrong with you?"

"This scroll just explains how he disarmed Deidara's clay explosives, followed by a picture of him flipping me off."

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In the Hidden Rain Village, a female Akatsuki addressed Pain "Come in Pain, it's time. He's arrived."

"Right." Pain entered the dark room to meet with a shadowy figure "Well? So how is Sasuke?"

"Coming along nicely, his Sharingan is at full power." the figure told him "His eyes will surpass even that of Itachi. Then the time has come, I'm sure his mind is made up since he doesn't have much longer."

"And what about the Kyuubi?"

"You will hunt it, and as leader I will not tolerate failure."

"Understood."

"Be on your guard, just in case. Naruto Uzumaki, he's no longer just some troublesome brat. He's acquired some formidable jutsu and has many powerful allies, it won't be easy. Be especially careful of Tatsu Kamikaze, he is particularly strong and even destroyed two of Kakuzu's lives in a single blow."

"Spare us your words of warning and fear, they are wasted on us. Pain has never lost a single battle." Konan pointed out.

"Well that is true. We're done here." the figure grabbed his cloak "Be certain to tell the other remaining members to hurry with the jinchuuriki."

"I know, I will." Pain told him.

"Soon, very soon, all of our goals will be achieved." the figure stepped out of the shadows, revealing himself to be Tobi "When that happens then everything will be restored to its rightful place. The true power of the Sharingan that belongs to me, Madara Uchiha!" and with that, he vanished.

Konan looked up at the rain "Once again the sky is weeping. Pain, are you…?"

Pain said nothing.

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"I'm coming in Tsunade." Jiraiya entered the room.

"Jiraiya, have you learned anything?" asked Tsunade.

"I have, I've located the leader of the Akatsuki."

"What?!" Tsunade bolted right out of her chair "You have? Tell me everything!"

"Now now, don't be hasty."

"This isn't like planning a sequel to your novel! We don't have any time to waste here!"

"But haste makes waste and we can't afford that, especially not with the stakes as high as they are now. Listen, why don't we go somewhere just the two of us and grab a drink together? I'll tell you everything I know."

"You old fool! I am the Hokage, I can't go drink in the middle of the day! What about all the ninja out there on duty? You should be ashamed of yourself!"

"When has that ever stopped you before?"

Tsunade yelped and looked to see Tatsu sitting in the windowsill "Oh great now you're doing that too."

"Yeah but the difference is that I can actually do it without you noticing. Dragon Sage Mode is a lot different from other types of Sage Mode."

"Well regardless, the answer is no!"

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15 minutes later…

Jiraiya sweatdropped as he watched Tsunade down a whole bottle of sake "You know, you really oughta take your own words a bit more to heart Tsunade. I mean, downing that sake straight out of the bottle? Like you said, you _are_ Hokage now."

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Suigetsu was losing his patience waiting for Karin "That girl is late again, how long does it take to pick up supplies?"

"This is Karin we're dealing with." Sasuke pointed out "Anyway, did you guys gather information on Itachi like I asked you to?"

"Well I picked up some intel about the Akatsuki here and there, but I wasn't able to find anything specific about Itachi. It appears they're targeting specific people, or at least they're after people with a very special chakra."

"I think what you're referring to is a jinchuuriki, a powerful shinobi with a Tailed Beast sealed inside of their bodies."

"Do you have any who any of them might be?"

"Gaara of the Sand, the Kazekage, used to be the jinchuuriki of the One-Tail before the Akatsuki extracted it from him, but one of the Sand elders revived him with a forbidden jutsu. Hotaru, you may not be aware of this, but your master Utakata is the jinchuuriki of the Six-Tails."

"I know actually." Hotaru told him.

"Well that makes it easier. Anyway, my teammate from the Leaf happens to be the jinchuuriki for the Kyuubi, and I've heard rumors about the jinchuuriki of the Eight-Tails in the Hidden Cloud having full control over his Tailed Beast. From what Dragon has told me before, by now the Akatsuki have captured all of the Tailed Beasts from the One-Tail all the way up to the Five-Tails, as well as the Seven-Tails. Anyway, back to Itachi."

"I've been conversing with the animals." Jugo told him "I've pinpointed a few Akatsuki hideouts, it seems they sense powerful unpleasant chakra coming from those places. At least that's what the animals told me."

"Wow, so you're saying even lowly animals have the ability to sense chakra? Or maybe it's because they're so lowly, just like Karin." Suigetsu commented.

Then Karin busted down the door and stomped on Suigetsu's head "Get up Sasuke, we're about to have company."

Sasuke let out a sigh "Fine, I'm up."

' _Even when he first wakes up he's still dreamy.'_

"Everyone get ready, we're leaving."

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They were soon ready and standing outside the inn.

"Jugo, mark the map with the location of every Akatsuki hideout you found." Sasuke ordered.

"You sure you're okay now Sasuke?" asked Suigetsu.

"Don't worry, I'm fine." Sasuke got a new outfit on, a dark blue shirt with the Uchiha clan symbol on the back of it, his Raijin katana strapped to his back, and a pair of black pants and his basic black cloak **(A/N: Basically what he wore when he left the Leaf in Tsunade's Infinite Tsukuyomi Dream, along with the black cloak)** ' _I've been healing a lot faster ever since I absorbed Orochimaru's power, so this is the power of the white snake.'_

"Whether it's the Akatsuki coming or the Hidden Leaf, they might have intel on Itachi we can use." Karin pointed out "Why don't we just ambush them Sasuke?"

"From what you've told me about the number of people tracking us, if they're coming in force then it's most likely the Hidden Leaf team that you sensed. The Akatsuki normally only operate in teams of two."

"And if that's the case then we would just be wasting our time with an ambush." Hotaru finished for him.

"Exactly. Don't worry about the Hidden Leaf, I'll take care of them when the time comes."

"What's the plan?" asked Karin.

"Itachi is our only priority at the moment, I will take care of the Hidden Leaf when the time comes. For now, this is the mission for Team Hebi. We're going to use the intel gathered by Jugo and hit the Akatsuki hideouts one by one."

"Alright, sounds good."

"But first, Karin I need you to take out my old outfit."

"...What are you talking about?"

"I know you held onto it, but I'm not going to go into that right now. Anyway, it's covered in my sweat and smell, and since the Leaf most likely has an Inuzuka with them Jugo will scatter pieces of the outfit so it will throw them off."

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Kiba noticed something off "What the-?"

"Kiba, what is it?" asked Naruto.

"It's Sasuke, it looks like he's on the move."

"Then we'd better hurry up and get after him, he's going after Itachi."

"Hold on, something's wrong."

"What?"

"Sasuke's scent is becoming more diffuse now, looks like it's scattering outward in every direction all at the same time."

"They probably sensed our movements and set this up to throw us off." Shikamaru guessed "For now we can only assume that Sasuke has a skilled sensory type on his squad."

"The scent is spreading too far and our coms aren't long range, I'm the only one who can track him but I don't know which scent to follow and I don't have enough chakra to use Shadow Clones to go after every scent. What do we do?"

"I'm gonna find him even if I have to search every blade of grass! I'll do whatever it takes, just watch! **Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** Naruto formed dozens of clones that all scattered.

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Hebi reached a marker for an Akatsuki hideout.

"So it's here." Sasuke noted "I want the four of you to wait here until I give the order, I'll go check it out." and he went on ahead alone."

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One of Naruto's clones hid behind a tree and looked out at a shadowy figure ' _Who is that? He's got the Sharingan… Sasuke? No, he's too tall.'_

"So you're here." the figure stepped out, revealing himself.

Naruto froze ' _That's Itachi Uchiha.'_

"Come on out, Naruto Uzumaki."

Reluctantly, Naruto stepped forward "Let me guess, you came to capture me? Well I should warn you, I've grown a lot stronger since the last time we met."

"I'm not here to capture you, right now I've only come here to talk to you about something." he nonchalantly threw some kunai at two clones behind him, dissipating them in an instant.

"Yeah like I'd ever trust any of the crap that comes out of you. _When going up against the Sharingan, if it's one on one then you always run. If it's two on one then attack from behind. This guy can cast a genjutsu with the same finger he uses to make hand seals, I've gotta be way careful about this.'_

"I know that you're out here all by yourself, so why aren't you trying to run?"

"No need, I can be any number from one to hundreds in an instant. Besides, why would I want to run? If I capture you then I get to see Sasuke."

"Why are you obsessed with my brother? He's just a rogue ninja now."

"He's anything but a rogue ninja, grandma Tsunade gave him a mission to go to Orochimaru and take him out the first chance he got. Besides, it doesn't matter if we're not blood but Sasuke is more of a brother to me than you ever were to him."

Itachi's lips twitched.

Naruto charged, forming hand seals " **Water Style: Raging Waves!"** he breathed out a blast of water.

Itachi was hit dead on by the jutsu, simply disappeared into a flock of crows "You're already under my genjutsu."

Naruto found himself surrounded by crows, and his surroundings were warped "Dammit!"

Then Itachi appeared in front of him "I'll say it again, I just want to talk."

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Tsunade put her glass down "So are you absolutely certain the Akatsuki leader is in the Hidden Rain Village?"

Jiraiya nodded "Yeah, I'm positive."

"That place conducts very thorough checks of anyone entering and exiting their territory, and even keeps track of how long they stay. Just preparing for the joint Chunin Exams is difficulty shared because that village is so strict and insular. Why would he pick that place? It just doesn't seem like somewhere he could move around very freely."

"That's true, but that very insular nature makes it ideal. They're able to keep other nations from learning about their internal affairs and cover up the shame of what's going on."

"Shame?"

"Apparently a civil war has been waging there for quite some time now and has divided the village in two, word has it that leader of one of the sides if the very Akatsuki leader that we're talking about."

"That tormented land, it's surrounded by the three great nations of Earth, Wind and Fire. It's often and long been used as the staging ground for all their battles, there's never been domestic stability there and the number of fleeing refugees keeps rising."

"Yes that's right, and that's exactly why I must infiltrate it and verify the information I've gathered. When I return, we'll plan our strategy."

"It's too dangerous to go alone."

"I'm one of the Leaf's legendary Sannin, you know what that means just as well as I do."

Tsunade looked away "I'm sorry, you always seem to get such unfortunate assignments."

Jiraiya let out a chuckle "What's with the sudden confession?"

"I'm merely saying that you were originally supposed to become Hokage, after all the Third Hokage always wanted you to succeed him."

"I'm not cut out for that sort of thing, I like being free and unfettered."

"You regretted not being able to stop Orochimaru, that's why you tracked his movements by yourself for so long isn't it?"

"...Well I no longer need to do that do I? That also means I get to release the sequel to my novel even sooner."

"Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction isn't it? I never imagined Orochimaru would die. Remember how the three of us would go up against the Third Hokage?"

"And now flat as a board Tsunade has become the big bosomed Hokage, times have changed and always will. You were always so beautiful back then, and now you're a 50-something granny. But it does pay me to see how you hold all the memories of your lost friends and loved ones inside that ample bosom of yours. As you know, the number will only continue to rise." he downed some more sake "Well then, we'll just have to keep our emotions in check. The job that we must give to ourselves now is to set examples and aid the next generation Tsunade. To achieve that I'd gladly risk my life, wisdom is the one thing that makes growing old worth it."

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Tatsu sat outside Amaguriama with some unexpected company "I find it extremely unnerving for you of all people to call me out like this."

"Your brother was aware of every single one of my operations." Danzo pointed out "But he understood something many did not."

"The fact that while some of your actions are incredibly appalling, everything you do is for the sake of the Leaf."

"Correct. He left you almost all of that information."

"He did, but that doesn't explain why you called me out here."

Danzo turned to face Tatsu with his one unbandaged eye "I trust that you are also aware that I provided Hanzo of the Salamander of the Hidden Rain Village."

"That was before the Uchiha clan met its end, back when you were still officially in charge of the Foundation."

"But I communicate with him secretly even after I had been ousted as well."

"Wait, are you saying that-?"

"But Hanzo abruptly stopped contacting me, if he had stopped trusting me then I'm sure he would have lured me out and killed me since I know so many secrets."

"But the fact that he did absolutely nothing disturbs you."

"I have no doubt in my mind that something has happened to Hanzo."

"What do you think that something is?"

Danzo took a sip of his tea "I think there's been some kind of trandestant incident in the Hidden Rain Village, the worst case being that Hanzo is no longer amongst the living."

"But that's insane, who would be capable of that? Hanzo took on all three Sannin at once and came out on top, the only people still alive who could take him would probably be then Tsuchikage or the Raikage. Besides, to the outside world Hanzo is still the leader of the Hidden Rain."

"I'm aware, and this is why I was sure to warn Princess Tsunade to be wary of the entrants from the Hidden Rain during the Chunin Exams last year."

"Fair enough. But wait, I thought she sent Kakashi to meet with Hanzo during then. How could he not find out?"

"Of that I can't be sure, but for now I feel we must bide our time and wait."

"So I've gotta get as strong as possible, at this point I fear even Sage Mode might not be enough."

"Just in case of that, use these." he handed Tatsu a scroll

"What is it?"

"A scroll containing various wind style jutsu in my arsenal, perhaps you and your teammate could make use of them. By the way, what happened to you?"

"Oh this?" Tatsu rubbed his black eye "Inoichi happened, overprotective father stuff and the like."

"I expected as much. Speaking of which, how is his daughter coming along?"

"Well she has an incredibly strong water style nature, probably the strongest in the village at the moment. She told me and Asuma that she wanted to surpass the Second Hokage in the area."

"The second, my sensei, was known for his remarkable mastery of water style. She's reaching high in her goal."

"Why are you so interested?"

"Because the future of the Leaf's stability depends on you and your generation."

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Naruto found himself back in reality, panting heavily on his knees ' _Dammit…_ What the hell is this? What are you doing? I thought you said that you weren't after me! Then why are you doing this?"

"I'm going now, I have an important matter to attend to." and Itachi promptly disappeared in a flock of crows.

' _So it was a Shadow Clone, but what the hell was that about?'_

"Damn, no luck with this scent either."

Naruto looked to see Kiba and the rest show up in front of him "Guys…"

"You okay Naruto?"

"Yeah…"

"Did something happen?"

"No, it's nothing. Nevermind that, Kiba get on the next scent."

"Right."

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Jiraiya was with Tsunade in an alley, helping her with her hangover "Damn, you're an even worse drunk than I am. Let's find some place where you can rest up."

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Sunset came.

Tsunade sat on a bench with Jiraiya "The Akatsuki, if its leader can control of such a powerful group then you have to wonder how strong he is. Jiraiya, this mission of yours will take you right into the lion's den."

"Well then, I think I'd better get going." Jiraiya got on his feet.

"Please come back alive Jiraiya, if I were to lose you too then I… I don't know."

"Are you saying you'd cry for me? I'm glad to hear it, but I doubt it would be like the time that Dan died right?"

"You idiot."

"Say, how about making a bet with me? You gamble everything on me dying, after all Tsunade you always lose your bets isn't that right? Promise me, if I do actually manage to make it back alive…" he turned to face her.

Tsunade felt her concern multiply.

Then Jiraiya burst out laughing "I'm only kidding Tsunade. You know I'm grateful to you." he pulled out one of his books "Rejection makes a man stronger, I believe you can't call yourself a real man unless you laugh off all the bad stuff that happens to you or at least use it as writing material."

"So a man's only job is to be strong?"

"Kind of, but that isn't the entire story. Basically, the pursuit of happiness isn't for us."

"Stop trying to act so cool, if there weren't any women around then there wouldn't be any rejection either."

"Well you have a point." Jiraiya looked away and stared at the sunset.

"If anything happens then contact me through your toad and I'll rush in to help you myself."

"No need for that, you mustn't leave the village. All of the Hidden Leaf is relying on you right now."

"Plenty of others could be Hokage."

"But there can be no stability if the leadership keeps changing, and right now there's no better Hokage in the Hidden Leaf Village then you Tsunade."

"No, that's not true. There's Kakashi and Asuma, maybe Tatsu and, well eventually Naruto will become Hokage as well."

"Boy you really are sold on Naruto aren't you?" Jiraiya looked up at the sunset "Although I can see why, your kid brother Nawaki, your boyfriend Dan and Naruto too, all three of them chasing after the same dream. So there's Kakashi and Naruto maybe, you may have given him your necklace but he still has a long way to go."

"You believe in him too, that's why you pushed him so hard Jiraiya. I mean, you even taught him to summon."

"Just put it down to nostalgia, he reminded me of the days when I taught Minato."

"Minato Namikaze, Naruto's just like him."

"Minato was a once in a generation genius, there won't be another like him ever. I mean Tatsu comes close, but not quite. He was kind of gentle yet fierce and full of grit, he became the Fourth Hokage in the blink of an eye. I've never been a parent before so I don't know very much about these kinds of things, but if he'd been my son then I would've been very proud."

"Now that you mention it, Naruto might not be like him after all. He's not the kind of child you'd boast about, he's the one whose mischief you always try to cover up. No, I'd say Naruto is more like his mother was."

"Wasn't she a kunoichi from the Land of Eddies?"

"That's right, his personality is just like Kushina Uzumaki."

"That's right, I had forgotten her name. She was a chatty red-haired little rascal, and she was quite a tomboy as I remember."

"She was that but she grew up to be a real beauty, but Naruto looks more like his father."

"Yeah when I look at Naruto I see a lot of his father, although to me it feels as if I'm looking at my very own grandson."

"It's being passed on, the will of the Leaf, from past to future."

Jiraiya fastened his scroll to his back "Now I really oughta get going. Oh that's right, I had one last warning." he looked back, deadly serious "Keep an eye on the Foundation Tsunade."

"Yes, I know."

"Good. Well then, see ya." and with that, he walked away.

Tsunade just watched, tears streaming down her face.

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Jiraiya found Tatsu waiting for him by the gate "Hey."

Tatsu decided to get straight down to business "You're not gonna come back are you?"

Jiraiya paused in his response, before letting out a laugh "Oh come on, who do you think you're talking to? I'm the hermit of Mount Myoboku, the wise and immortal spirit, the Toad Mountain Sage, one of the Legendary Sannin, a writer of great books-"

"You're the writer of _a_ great book, you wrote one of the greatest books of all time before your career took one of the biggest nosedives in history."

"Oh really, and what book would this be exactly?"

"Oh yeah that's right, I never did tell you did I?" Tatsu pulled out a book from his bag.

Jiraiya looked at the book, only to be surprised "This is…"

"Tales of A Gutsy Ninja, your first book and without a doubt the best. I always wanted the author to sign it for me, and I figured this might be my last chance."

Jiraiya took the book, wrote his name down, and handed it back to Tatsu "You're a good kid with great potential and a good heart, take care of Naruto for me." and with that, he departed.

"Sure thing."

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After a long journey, Jiraiya was able to successfully infiltrate the Hidden Rain Village, where he wandered around the town and spoke to a number of inhabitants about their leader, Pain.

Unfortunately, gathering information on this was less than successful, and so he tried a new method of intel gathering: capture two suckers, I mean lower ninja of the city in a tavern, in a tavern that was actually the stomach of one of his summoning toads.

The two ninja quickly caved and told him that the mysterious Pain had been able to defeat the former Hidden Rain leader Hanzo, someone who was so powerful that even the three Sannin together were unable to defeat him.

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At the same time, Pain sensed an intruder in the village and ordered Konan to search for this intruder until he himself was ready.

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Jiraiya summoned the toad Geotara and talked with him about how he was going into a difficult battle and that he would have to be ready, as well as one other thing that was increasingly significant, and would become even more so as time went on:

The Kyuubi, or Kurama, attacking the Hidden Leaf Village 16 years ago was not a natural disaster, it was summoned by someone. This someone happened to be an Uchiha, and that Uchiha was none other than Madara Uchiha.

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After having Konan stall for time while Pain changed into a new body, Pain arrived on the battlefield in order to personally confront Jiraiya, who just happened to be their former sensei from years ago.

Pain launched into a discussion with Jiraiya regarding his personal ideology and the overall goals of the Akatsuki, and then he reveals that the purpose of collecting the Tailed Beasts is so that he can created a weapon of Forbidden Jutsu that will be able to destroy entire nations in an instant, so that the world would be able to mature and develop an aversion for war.

Pain then went on to summon a Rinnegan crab in order to attack Jiraiya, which was quickly defeated before Jiraiya went on to summon the toad Gamaken.

Jiraiya and Gamaken began their battle against Pain, the former having hidden himself using camouflage.

Jiraiya used a barrier jutsu to try and find him while preparing to enter Sage Mode, his secret trump card.

Meanwhile, Pain assaulted Jiraiya with a barrage of animal summons, such as a multiplying dog, a rhino, a bird and a bull, all of which had the Rinnegan just like he did.

Jiraiya finally entered Sage Mode after sending Gamaken back home, and then went on to summon Lord Fukasaku and Lady Shima, who found Pain and destroyed his Rinnegan chameleon without too much trouble.

Pain then went on to summon two more of his Six Paths of Pain, and the battle intensified even further.

Jiraiya blinded one of the new Pains, and Lord Fukasaku was able to theorize that all three shared the same eyes and vision due to the Rinnegan, while Jiraiya realized that each of the bodies has only one specific purpose of the Rinnegan.

Jiraiya tried to stall for time while Lord Fukasaku and Lady Shima prepared a powerful genjutsu to defeat the bodies, and despite some clear difficulty, they were successful in doing so.

As Jiraiya prepared to leave the battlefield, fourth path of Pain ambushed Jiraiya from behind while his guard was down destroying his left arm in the process.

As Jiraiya attempted to force himself to his feet, he looked up and saw six Pains, including the three that were killed mere moments ago, leaving him to wonder in horror as to just who and what Pain was exactly.

Now Jiraiya was in a deep state of panic, thinking that Pain is either Yahiko or Nagato, as Pain possesses Rinnegan which Nagato had and he appears as Yahiko.

Jiraiya eventually managed to kill one of the Pains, albeit just barely, only to realise he had fought him before during his travels many years ago.

Lady Shima eventually left, albeit extremely reluctantly, on Jiraiya's request, before Jiraiya came to the realization that he has met all of the Pains before.

Jiraiya eventually managed to figure out who Pain was, as Pain attacks Jiraiya and began crushing his throat ruthlessly.

As the light begins to fade from his eyes, he remembered Naruto's determination and unwavering spirit and forced himself awake, where he wrote a coded message on Lord Fukasaku's back before helping him to escape, leaving Jiraiya to face the six paths of Pain alone in one final stand.

After Jiraiya gave one final attack Pain then blasted him into the ocean, where Jiraiya sank all the way to the bottom as he quietly died with a smile on his face knowing that Naruto would live in his place.

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As he continued on with his team, Naruto suddenly felt a hand grab his shoulder and stopped to check ' _What the-? What was that?'_

"Naruto, what's wrong?" asked Shikamaru.

"I'm not sure, I just felt something."

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With the battle over, Pain took a few moments to contemplate the death of Jiraiya, his former master, and decided to pay his respects to him and acknowledge his strength. After that, he decided to execute the orders given to him and Konan by Madara.

As soon as his preparations were made, they would journey to the Hidden Leaf Village, and capture the Nine Tails…

 **A/N:**

 **This chapter has been revised, not very heavily though. I just gave a more detailed summary of Jiraiya's final mission instead of just skipping it.**

 **I know that's not how Sasuke escaped in canon but my fanfic, my rules so live with it.**

 **Yes Tatsu knows Sage Mode, he learned it during the 6 week gap between the events of last chapter and the events of this chapter. And just to be clear, he doesn't know the truth about Itachi, at least not yet.**

 **To reader R, thank you for understanding my plans about Danzo. If you want to know, here's a small look into my plans:**

 **Having Danzo fight Pain during the invasion, not using any of his eyes or right arm.**

 **Making it so Danzo would let Itachi spare those not involved in the Uchiha coup, but Madara getting involved botched that deal.**

 **Having Danzo deliberately lure Madara away from the Five Kage Summit in an attempt to stop him personally.**

 **I'm having a hard time thinking about what to do for him taking one of Shisui's eyes, if you could give me some suggestions then I'd really appreciate that.**

 **As for Asuma, I'm thinking about giving him Sage Mode from the monkey contract like the Third had. You know, like the Monkey King Enma that the Third summoned in his fight with Orochimaru that can turn into the staff.**


	13. The Rise and the Fall of Itachi Uchiha

"I wonder if Sasuke is okay." Suigetsu commented.

"What's that mean?" asked Karin.

"What do you think? What if the first Akatsuki hideout we try is a bullseye?"

"Wait a minute, are you saying that Itachi is in this hideout?" asked Hotaru.

"I don't know, I only said what if. This Itachi is supposed to be pretty strong isn't he?"

"No, there's no way that Sasuke could lose to him." Karin insisted "No way…"

"Well I hope not, but maybe we should be planning for the worst case scenario here."

' _Sasuke…_ Alright, I'm going to check inside. If anything happens then we're going in."

"We're what? And more importantly, why the hell are you taking over all of a sudden? Boy when it comes to Sasuke you always go overboard."

"No I don't, that just isn't true at all! Fine I won't go you idiot!"

"Then I'll ask the birds, I'll have them scour the entire area and keep an eye out for the approach of any enemies." Jugo told them.

Suigetsu let out a sigh ' _Damn, look at those two. They're so diligent, at this point I'm pretty sure Hotaru and I are the only normal ones.'_

Hotaru looked at him "Did you say something?"

"...Nope."

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Naruto stopped the group "Guys, hold up."

"What's wrong?" asked Ino.

"My clones just disappeared, all of the scents in the south forest were false leads."

"Hey don't look so down Naruto." Kiba told him "I thought you never give up no matter what, isn't that your ninja way?"

"That's Bushy Brow's, my is to never give up and never go back on my word. Anyway, now I'll use the chakra I restored and increase the number of Shadow Clones." he summoned several dozen clones "I'm counting on you." and he sent them on their way.

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Sasuke made his way to the bottom of the Akatsuki hideout ' _Itachi… I'll show you all of my rage…'_

"So you've come." a voice noted.

Sasuke stopped in his tracks "Who's there? Show yourself."

"It's me… Sasuke." the figure revealed himself as Itachi.

Almost instantly, Sasuke's Sharingan flared into life.

"You've gotten a bit taller."

"And you haven't changed even a little, you still have those cold eyes."

"You're not going to just pass me by with some big speech are you Sasuke?"

"Don't be a fool Itachi, you know absolutely nothing about me." Sasuke suddenly managed to blitz behind Itachi and run him through with his Raijin sword "You have no idea what I carry for you in my heart, rage and despair, but above all resolve, and you don't know just how strong I've become because of that resolve. You don't know me at all, to me you are nothing more than a stranger now." he channeled the sword's power, causing Itachi to cough up blood as he removed his sword.

Itachi fell back and looked up at Sasuke "You've… gotten stronger…" then he suddenly dissolved into a flock of crows "Meet me at the Uchiha Hideout. Alone. We'll settle things there."

' _The Uchiha Hideout, a fitting place to end all of this so I can finally return to my home and begin my life anew.'_

"Sasuke!" then Hotaru and the rest showed up.

"I thought I told you guys to wait until I gave you the signal."

"Karin sensed another chakra in here, we got worried so we thought we'd better come in and check on you."

"It was a clone, nothing to worry about." he started walking away "Let's go."

"Where to?"

"To the place where I will end this, the Uchiha Hideout."

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Sasuke continued on with his group, only to notice Karin looking disturbed "What is it?"

"I sense the same chakra all over the place." Karin told him.

"That's probably one of the Leaf ninja using his Shadow Clones to search for us. Where's the nearest one?"

"Right ahead of us and closing in."

"Good, there's something I have to do." he stopped the group a little ways ahead "We'll wait here and wait for him to come to us."

Naruto suddenly appeared in front of him "Sasuke."

"I didn't think you'd come to see me off."

"Let me just start by saying that by no means do I like anything about this, especially the part where you guys are so okay with hurting Kin over it."

"Believe me, I hate having to hurt her like this."

"I know, but that's not why I'm here." Naruto held something out "I figured you'd want this if you were gonna go through with it."

"You really kept that thing all this time?"

"It's a symbol of who you are, and who your brother isn't. And above all, don't come back without kicking his ass."

Sasuke accepted what Naruto was holding: Sasuke's old Leaf headband "I'll hang onto it, at least for now."

"And Sasuke? Good luck."

"Thanks." Sasuke continued on.

Suigetsu and the rest followed him "So that was your old teammate huh?"

"Yeah, he never liked the idea of me going to Orochimaru even though it was an order from the Hokage herself."

"I see."

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Tsunade looked at the man in front of her, then looked at Tatsu, her voice low "You're sure about this?"

Tatsu nodded, his voice just ass low "Positive, it's always best to keep these sorts of things on our radar instead of letting them run loose in the shadows. He also understands that things can't all be his way, there has to be compromise in a delicate situation like this."

"Fine, I'll go along with your plan at least for now."

"So what can I do for you, Princess Tsunade?" asked the man.

Tsunade let out a long frustrated sigh "Danzo, after receiving some sound advice and planning from a certain source, I've decided to reinstate the Foundation."

Danzo actually leaned forward in his chair in shock "What?"

"We're well aware that you firmly believe that what you do is helping the Leaf, but the way you go about it is all wrong. I prefer to have the Foundation legal rather than go through every day knowing that you're acting behind my back. I'm not like Sarutobi-sensei. He never did anything because you were his friend, however I am not. I would go and dismantle everything you've worked as hard as you have for these past years, but that would be a waste of talent and shinobi forces we can't afford to lose, especially not right now with the Akatsuki on the rise."

Danzo was still shocked and remained silent.

"So the Foundation will become the specialist unit of the ANBU, like how tokubetsu is for jonin. We'll be removing all Curse Marks since there's no secret to be kept."

"But how would you-?"

"I've been experimenting with my genryu chakra." Tatsu informed him "Thanks to that I've discovered that it can purify seals, thereby erasing them."

"...Proceed."

"I'll let Tatsu handle the Curse Marks." Tsunade continued "The training will be changed, they will no longer employ the same exercises as the old Bloody Mist graduation exam. It's barbaric and I refuse to lose possible soldiers all for the sake of passing someone else. There will be more than just orphans invited, all jonin who wish to join ANBU may enter the Foundation first and train until they are prepared for the exams."

Danzo stayed silent and didn't move.

"I know where the headquarters for the Foundation is." Tatsu pointed out "We both have sources that got us info on the other, but my source is a lot better than yours. I know everything about you and what you've been doing these past few years, yet you're still in the dark about a large part of me for these past three years and that's driving you crazy. If you refuse to cooperate with us on this then I will personally go and dismantle everything you've worked for hesitation, so you can either be a part of this or not. Each member of Team Dragon has gotten the Leaf alliances with other nations and villages, including smaller ones that are good for trading, and we won't have your mistakes ruining that."

Danzo looked Tatsu in the eye ' _No hesitation or nervousness in his gaze, it seems even more firm than his brothers. He's telling the truth, and unlike Sarutobi he'll follow through. At this point, my options are to either help with the process of this new Foundation or watch as he single-handedly destroys everything I've worked for. At least if I help then I could give my opinion and he'll at least listen to it. As for removing the seals, there is logic behind that. There is no point for them with the Foundation being reinstated. He's also correct about changing the exam, using that method is just sacrificing potential shinobi. The Kamikaze clan has always been intelligent, but his intellect may even surpass that of Kazuma.'_

"Lady Hokage has agreed to forget everything illegal act you may or may not have committed if you assist us in restructuring the Foundation, you won't be in trouble so long as we have your full cooperation."

Danzo knew his only option was to accept the offer "Very well, I will cooperate."

"Alright, good. Now then, onto our next order of business." he pulled out a scroll and summoned some sketches "We're redesigning the Leaf's flak jackets, making them slimmer and easier to move in." then he noticed another file sticking out "What's this?"

"Oh that? That's an old file from a few years ago." Tsunade told him nonchalantly.

"Leaf Village's Maximum Security Prison? Was there a jailbreak or something?"

"Well… not exactly. See, during Orochimaru's invasion, it was reported that one of the inmates just disappeared."

"What, there was a breakout?"

"No, that's the strange part. The prison was oddly untouched during the invasion, but one of the inmates just up and vanished without a trace. No signs of being captured, no signs of a breakout, nothing."

"Who was it? Aizen? Those idiot brothers that could sumo slam Kakashi?"

"No, here's the prisoner's ID."

Tatsu looked at the ID and his eyes nearly bulged out of his head "You've gotta be kidding me."

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Sasuke led his group onwards "Come on, the Uchiha Hideout isn't much further."

Then Karin noticed something "What is this?"

"What's wrong?"

"It's a humongous chakra, and it's fast too."

"Does it feel similar to me?"

"No."

"Then I have a fairly good idea of who it might be."

"Is that so?" a figure appeared in front of them.

"I shouldn't be surprised you're here as well, Kisame Hoshigaki."

"Only Sasuke alone may go beyond this point, Itachi's orders so that's how it's going to be. The rest of you are welcome to wait right here with me."

"Fair enough. Besides, the only reason I brought a team with me was to make sure nobody would intervene." he looked back "Kisame is here to make sure you guys don't help me, I want you to make sure that goes both ways. This vendetta is mine and mine alone." and he went on, leaving the rest behind.

Suigetsu stepped forward "Kisame Hoshigaki and his sword Samehada."

Kisame blinked "How do you know that?"

"Did you forget me? I'm Suigetsu Hozuki, the younger brother of Mangetsu."

"Oh is that right, I didn't even recognize you. My you sure have grown Suigetsu."

"It would be boring just to wait around for Sasuke don't you think? So what do you say we play around and have ourselves a little bit of fun Master Kisame?"

"Unlike your brother you're quite impetuous aren't you Suigetsu?" Kisame drew Samehada from his back "So maybe I should cut you down to size."

"Just come and try it."

"Listen, shouldn't we just obey Sasuke's orders? Jugo suggested.

Karin was mentally fuming ' _Don't be stupid blockhead, you're such a dunce!'_

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Naruto led the group onwards "Come on guys, this way!"

"Wait, Naruto!" Hinata noticed something ' _What's that chakra?'_

"We don't have time to wait!"

Then Tobi popped up, still in his idiot persona "Howdy!"

"What the-?" Naruto fell back ' _Great, I always get the weird ones.'_

"Well now, how's it going there, there and there? Imagine running into Hidden Leaf folks in a place like this, and it's 2, 4, 6, 8 against 1! What bad luck!"

"Judging by those robes, you're a member of the Akatsuki too." Shikamaru guessed "Though you weren't on that roster Kabuto gave us."

"Well I'm kinda new here, nice to meet you."

Kiba smirked "Think you're funny huh? Look buddy, don't waste our time."

"Don't be rash." Kakashi warned "We need to wait and see, study the situation first. We do have an advantage in numbers."

"Oh dear, am I being underestimated by you guys?" Tobi mocked.

"Get out of our way!" Naruto suddenly appeared and attempted to slam him with a Wind Style: Rasengan from behind.

"A Shadow Clone?"

Naruto ended up phasing right through him.

"Just kidding."

' _Dammit, what the hell is with this guy?'_

"Naruto." Shikamaru spoke up "Do you remember the tactic we used back when Sasuke was taken by Orochimaru's thugs?"

"Yeah, you left one man behind every time you ran into an enemy and that ended up botching the whole mission."

"Don't remind me. Anyway, this time we're trying something different. I'm sending you and Kin on ahead alone to find Sasuke."

"Shikamaru…"

"Climbing Silver, you sacrifice a pawn to infiltrate the enemy's line. We're all the pawns in this move, you're the bishop, now go protect your king."

"...Alright, I'm counting on you Shikamaru." and he went on ahead, with Kin following.

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Sasuke slowly made his way to the Uchiha Hideout, his Sharingan flaring into life ' _Not much longer now. Get ready Itachi, I'm coming for you.'_ he looked at his headband and slowly removed the bandages on his head, then strapped the headband on ' _But I'm not doing this as an Uchiha, or as a shinobi of the Leaf, I'm doing this as Sasuke Uchiha the Thunderclap, one who will harden his heart to protect the ones he loves.'_

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Naruto continued on with Kin when he noticed something "What the hell?"

"What's wrong?" asked Kin.

"Something's coming."

Sure enough, a figure with pink hair appeared wearing a crimson mask and Akatsuki robe appeared before them "So you actually made it this far, Naruto Uzumaki."

"And who the hell are you supposed to be?"

"The one who's come to kill you and obtain my revenge for what you and your friends have done to me?"

Naruto motioned for Kin to get behind him "I don't know who the hell you are or what the hell you're going on about, but I'm not gonna let you stop us from getting to Sasuke! **Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** he fired a barrage of multiplying shuriken.

" **Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** the figure fired off her own barrage, cancelling out Naruto's attack.

" **Wind Style: Air Dragon Jutsu!"** Naruto fired a wind dragon.

" **Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!"** the figure fired a water dragon to cancel out the wind dragon.

' _She keeps countering my attacks, at this rate I'm not gonna get anywhere._

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Itachi sat on the throne in the Uchiha hideout ' _My foolish little brother…'_ he thought back to his past with Sasuke and the assassination he carried out after joining the ANBU, and being under close watch for suspicious activities. He was snapped out of his thoughts and opened his eyes, activating his Sharingan for the one in front of him "How much can you see with that Sharingan of yours?"

Sasuke slowly walked forward "You want to know how much I can see with these? Well Itachi, what I'm seeing right now is you lying dead at my feet."

"You see me dead do you? Well then…" in the next instant, Itachi was behind Sasuke, back to back with him "Come on then Sasuke, make my death a reality."

"If that's what you want then fine, I will." Sasuke drew a kunai to clash with Itachi's attack.

Itachi thrusted a kunai forward.

Sasuke blocked it with his sword, as well as an attempted kick.

Itachi then used his Early Sacrifice technique to jump on Sasuke's shoulder to avoid the attack, then spun Sasuke around before slamming him into a wall, edging his sword into the ceiling.

Sasuke quickly regained his footing " **Chidori!"** a Chidori flared into life in his hand as he charged forward " **Chidori Stream!"** he slammed the Chidori into the ground.

Itachi leapt into the air.

"Gotcha!" Sasuke appeared on the roof, grabbed his sword, and impaled Itachi through the stomach with it.

"You have… gotten strong…"

"Listen close Itachi, I'm only going to say this once. There's one final thing I have to ask of you."

Itachi raised two fingers and pointed them to the right.

Sasuke looked to see Itachi sitting in the throne, then looked down to see the Itachi underneath him dissolve into a flock of clones "The exact same words and your signature crows as well, starting with your favorite genjutsu farce are you?"

"So what exactly do you want to know? It won't be the last thing, but I'll hear what you have to say."

"Well first, let me give this one more shot."

Itachi's eyes widened as he was stabbed from behind by a sword, and looked to see the Sasuke in front of him disappear with a surge "A Thunder Clone…"

"I have one last thing to ask, do you hear me?" he put pressure on the blade "Answer my question, the pain in my chest won't stop until you do."

"You deliberately avoided a vital spot."

"Do you remember what you said that night? You said that I would be the fourth person to activate the Mangekyo Sharingan counting you. Did that include Shisui as well?"

"So you know…"

"Yes, now did you add him?"

"No, I wasn't including him."

"Then what other Uchiha obtained it?"

"But why would you even concern yourself with such a thing?"

"Because after you, I'm going to target him next."

"You'll target him?"

"Back when you slaughtered our entire clan, even going so far as to make the bodies of the students disappear without a trace, you mentioned the existence of another. The other Uchiha you didn't kill, you must've been co-conspiring with him. I don't care how good you were back then, there's no way that even you would've been able to take out the Leaf Police Force single handedly."

"So you figured it out…"

"Who is it? Who helped you that night?" Sasuke pushed his sword further "Tell me!"

"It was… Madara Uchiha."

Sasuke's eyes shot wide "Madara… Uchiha?"

"One of the founders of the Hidden Leaf Village, the man who first awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan."

"A founder? That's absurd, Madara should be long dead by now. Do you really see me as that much of a fool?"

"Madara is still alive, whether or not you choose to believe that is entirely up to you."

"Are you out of your mind, or is it that you just think that little of me?"

"Each of us lives dependent and bound by our individual knowledge and our awareness, all of that is what we call reality. However, both knowledge and awareness are equivocal. One's reality might be another's illusion. We all live inside our own fantasies, don't you think that's true Sasuke?"

"Just what are you trying to say?"

"I'm saying that thinking Madara is dead is merely an arbitrary assumption that you've decided to make, in exactly the same way that you once assumed that I was your kind and gentle older brother. I have acted like the older brother you desired for one reason, because I wanted to discover how powerful you were."

"What happened that night, I was so young. I thought it was all merely an illusion, I desperately wanted to believe I was trapped in a horrible genjutsu. But there was no mistake, I was trapped in reality!" he turned and fired a Chidori Sharp Spear at the real Itachi sitting behind him "My eyes are not the same as they once were, my Sharingan can see through genjutsu."

"You speak with such confidence as you always do, well for now I'm willing to take your word for it."

"I'm done playing along with your parlor tricks." Sasuke retracted his jutsu.

"Confidence is fine Sasuke, but it appears that you still do not possess the same eyes as I do. So you just couldn't do it, you couldn't kill your best friend and yet you still dare to come here to face me with such weak resolve?"

"Lacking the same eyes goes both ways, while I lack the Mangekyo Sharingan you lack the Sanda Sharingan. But if you're so confident in your abilities then go ahead, hurry up and try to kill me with your oh so amazing Mangekyo Sharingan, or is it that I'm just too strong now to test your capabilities against mine?"

Itachi let out a sigh as he stood "Such confidence. The Mangekyo Sharingan are very special eyes, the moment they awaken they progress towards darkness and the more they're used the faster they're sealed."

"And what exactly do you mean by sealed?"

"The Mangekyo eventually lose their light."

"Blindness, so that's the price of obtaining the power to control the Kyuubi is it?"

"So you did as I instructed and read the lithographs in the secret Uchiha meeting place."

"Exactly who and what is Madara?"

"The first man to ever tame the Kyuubi with his eyes, an immortal man who is both my comrade and my mentor and the exceptional man who is the only one to ever uncover the other secret of the Mangekyo Sharingan. _That_ is Madara Uchiha."

"Did you say the other secret of the Mangekyo Sharingan? What other visual power does it possess? Can it do more than just tame the Kyuubi?"

"Yes, another secret, the most important one of all."

"The most important secret of all? Tell me, what is it?"

Itachi paused.

"What is it? Answer me!"

"Let me tell you a little bit about the past, particularly the history of the Uchiha. Back then, Madara had a younger sibling, a brother." he used a genjutsu to show Sasuke the history of Madara and his younger brother "From the time they were children, the two honed their skills by competing with each other. Eventually, they both awakened their Sharingan and they made names for themselves both inside and outside the Uchiha clan. The two continued to push each other, seeking to sharpen and advance their visual prowess, and then the brothers killed off those most precious to them and in doing so they finally awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan. It had never before been seen among the Uchiha clan, the brothers used their visual prowess to unite the clan and Madara was named its new leader. However, Madara began suffering strange physical symptoms. As I just told you this eye is special, the more you use it the quicker it becomes sealed with the end result being total darkness. That is the fate of the Mangekyo Sharingan, in exchange for obtaining critical visual prowess that power shuts itself down cutting off the light forever. In order to try to reclaim the light Madara tried all of the methods he could find, but nothing was effective. He became lost in despair and, haunted by the Mangekyo Sharingan, desperately seeking the light, he stole both eyes from his younger brother. And so Madara obtained new light, and after that never again did the light fade from his eyes. An Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan. It is said that by finding a new host, his younger brother's eyes obtained eternal light and another change emerged, a distinctly new and unique visual jutsu was born from those eyes. However, this exchange can only take place between clan members and not everyone obtains new powers from this method either. These truths were only gradually discovered over time, after countless sacrifices. _That_ is the other secret of the Mangekyo Sharingan. Madara used his newfound powers to take control of one ninja clan after another. Ultimate he formed an alliance with the most powerful clan, the Senju clan of the forest, and established a new organization. Later, he clashed with the leader of the Senju clan, the future First Hokage, over the course the village would take. He may have lost the battle over leadership, but Madara still lives on with his visual prowess in tact. He's been hiding himself among the shadows, creating a new organization, one you know very well."

Sasuke felt the realization hit him like a ton of bricks "The Akatsuki…"

"Exactly. 16 years ago, when the Kyuubi attacked the Hidden Leaf Village, it was the doing of Madara. But like Madara's bid for power, the Fourth Hokage stopped that too in short. Madara is a bitter defeated loser now, he's not worthy or capable of grasping the true greatness of the Uchiha clan. I am the one, I shall surpass Madara and achieve real greatness! Now I can finally obtain power exceeding that of Madara!" then he turned insane "Sasuke, you are the one who will become my new light! You have my spare eyes! Activating the Mangekyo Sharingan always required an Uchiha to take down a friend, parents and siblings killed each other to obtain eternal visual prowess! We're both from a tainted bloodline, it's advanced in strength this way throughout the ages and from the day you were born into our clan you were unavoidably entwined in this blood soaked fate!" a large monstrous figure appeared from behind Itachi and bound Sasuke with its tails "Now come my little brother, I shall kill you to obtain my true transformation and finally be free from the fate of our clan! I shall break loose from all the restrictions and free myself from all the constraints that bind me! We are each other's spares! THIS IS THE TRUE BOND BETWEEN THE BROTHERS OF THE UCHIHA!"

Sasuke's Sharingan flared into life as he slowly removed his cloak.

' _It seems you were able to see my inner self.'_

"It was all just for this." Sasuke's voice was soft as he reflected on his life until that point "I've finally arrived, the moment in which I can obtain my goal is here at last."

"You said that you see me dead at your feet, but you cannot possibly win against me and my Mangekyo Sharingan. Unfortunately, your goal will end as mere fantasy and vanish like a dream upon waking because you do not possess my visual prowess." Itachi pushed his arm back into the sleeve.

Sasuke slowly removed the bandages on his arms "It doesn't matter how much you use those eyes of yours, I will use all of my resolve turn my fantasy into reality. And your reality is death by my hand." using the summons on his wrists, he summoned a barrage of shuriken and fired them forward.

Itachi countered by firing his own barrage of shuriken, before he stepped forward and charged.

Sasuke met the charge and caught Itachi's right arm, his own left arm being caught in the process.

Another Itachi leapt up from behind the first one.

' _Even during all that, he was able to weave signs for a Shadow Clone?!'_

The second Itachi fired a barrage of kunai.

Sasuke forced a snake to burst out of his Curse Mark and used it to shield himself, then leapt backwards as he retracted the snake and fired off a Demon Wind Shuriken.

Itachi blocked it with a kunai.

Sasuke then activated the lightning chakra he infused within the shuriken.

"He ran his Chidori through it?!" Itachi's Shadow Clone dissipated, leaving only the real one remaining as he then appeared in front of Sasuke and kicked him into the wall.

Sasuke attempted to use another Chidori.

Itachi blitzed in front of Sasuke and trapped his arms and feet "Forgive me, Sasuke. This is my reality, give me your light." he then proceeded to seemingly carve Sasuke's right Sharingan out, causing him to scream in pain.

Sasuke clutched the bleeding spot where his right eye had been.

"I told you Sasuke, you don't possess the Mangekyo Sharingan and you'll never be able to win against these eyes of mine. And now I'll take the other one too."

Sasuke partially activated the second level of his Curse Mark, forming a wing, forcing Itachi to retreat back.

' _So that's the power of the Curse Mark.'_ Itachi quickly stuffed Sasuke's right eye into a small capsule from his sleeve "This is the difference in our strengths, and…" another Itachi suddenly grabbed Sasuke from behind "The difference between your eyes and mine." the first then reached forward in order to take the second eye.

Desperate, Sasuke fully activated the second level of his Curse Mark, snake bursting out of his back and stabbing through the second Itachi, and everything turned black and white and begin breaking up ' _This is…'_ panting heavily, Sasuke found himself back in reality and promptly fell to his knees ' _That was… Itachi's Tsukuyomi…'_

Itachi then promptly fell to his knees, clutching his left eye "You… broke through my Tsukuyomi?"

Slowly, Sasuke got back onto his feet "Like I told you before, no matter what you may use with your eyes or how much you may use it, with all of my resolve I will turn my fantasy into your reality."

"Turn your fantasy into my reality you say?" Itachi got back to his feet "Some strong words, then let me throw them right back at you now. Just a few moments ago you saw your eyes being gouged out during the Tsukuyomi, now allow me to make that a reality as well." he blitzed through several hand seals.

To prevent Itachi from wielding signs, Sasuke fired off a Demon Wind Shuriken, which then formed a second, initiating the Shadow Shuriken Jutsu.

Itachi leapt in between the shuriken, barely avoiding being sliced.

Sasuke then pulled on some wire strings.

' _A rigged shuriken?!'_ Itachi found himself stabbed in the leg by one of the blades, causing him to fall to the ground.

' _Perfect, those last shuriken did the trick.'_

Itachi staggered to his feet and pulled the blade out of his leg, then clutched his eye, his vision blurring slightly.

"You must be feeling the backlash from your Tsukuyomi right about now, painful as hell for you but absolute heaven for me. The moment I nullified your Tsukuyomi, I seized control of this battle." he formed a hand seal " **Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"** he breathed out a fireball.

Itachi leapt out of the way.

" **Lightning Style: Purple Thunder!"** Sasuke charged a blast of purple lightning in his hand and charged at Itachi, breaking through the roof of the hideout.

Itachi leapt through the hole in the roof and fired a fireball into the smoke.

When the smoke cleared, Sasuke appeared, having used the Curse Mark to protect himself from the attack "These wounds are nothing, they won't even come close to slowing me down." he formed hand seals " **Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"** he breathed out another fireball.

" **Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"** Itachi breathed out his own fireball.

Sasuke quickly put more power into his fireball, gaining the upper hand.

Blood poured from Itachi's right eye " **Amaterasu!"** he unleashed the black flames of the Mangekyo Sharingan and combined them with his fireball, cancelling out Sasuke's fire jutsu before he dispelled the flames.

' _Dammit, he put out with fire. I should've expected as much, with the Amaterasu he can turn even flames to ash.'_ Sasuke then took off running around the rooftop.

" **Amaterasu!"** Itachi unleashed more black flames, burning part of the forest surrounding the top of the hideout.

Sasuke attempted to outrun the flames, but his wing was hit and the flames spread to the rest of his body, causing him to cry out in pain.

Panting heavily, Itachi slowly made his way towards Sasuke's body and reached forward.

That is, before Sasuke's body suddenly melted through a crack in the floor.

Itachi looked down to see the real Sasuke back inside the hideout.

' _Good thing I used Purple Thunder at the last second to make a hole in the roof so I could use an Orochimaru-style Substitution Jutsu. I'm running low on chakra, if I'm going to do this then it has to be now.'_ Sasuke formed a hand seal " **Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu!"** he breathed out a large fire dragon.

Itachi leapt back at the last second, causing the fire dragon to fly up into the atmosphere, along with two more fire dragons following that one, though his arm was burnt.

Sasuke fully activated the second level of his Curse Mark, now devoid of any wings "That Amaterasu of yours, looks to me like it took quite a lot out of you." then he fell to one knee and his Curse Mark receded, a smirk tugging at his lips ' _This will probably be my last jutsu.'_

"The Sharingan can assess your chakra level so just give up on this ridiculous bluff of yours. I can tell with a simple glance that you're out of chakra. You used the Orochimaru-style Substitution Jutsu to evade my Amaterasu, it's a good trick to deceive your opponent but it uses up an enormous amount of chakra."

"Not going to lie, you've got me there." Sasuke got back to his feet "I don't have even a scrap of chakra left, I used up every last scrap of it in that last fire style jutsu." then a smirk tugged at his lips as rain began pouring down, lightning flashing overhead "However, do you really believe that I'd come here to kill you without being prepared? _I've really gotta thank Dosu for this later._ Like a comrade of mine once said, it's wise to always have an ace in the hole. It lasts only for an instant, and this is a jutsu that can't be blocked or dodged, just like the Amaterasu. Now then Itachi, you asked for it so here it is at last. The time has come, the time for me to make your death a reality! I've steeled my resolve and gained my power, and now I'm here to settle this. The time has come Itachi, you will die here and now by my hand! _My real target was never Itachi to begin with, I shot those fire dragons into the sky to cause the ambient temperature in the atmosphere to rapidly increase and create an ascending air current to form a cumulonimbus cloud, otherwise known as a thundercloud. Now I don't have to use my own chakra, now I can take advantage of the enormous energy in the atmosphere to create an extremely powerful lightning style jutsu that will be on a totally different scale from whatever anyone could create using change in chakra nature alone.'_ he leapt onto the highest point on the hideout and held up his hand ' _I deliberately lured Itachi outside so I could use the heat generated by the Amaterasu._ This jutsu guides the lightning down from the heavens, all I have to do is merely direct its power right at you. That's why this jutsu can't be evaded. Lightning flashes at 1/1000th of a second, even faster than sound. I refer to this jutsu as Kirin. Now I've tamed lightning itself. Come!" he summoned the lightning in the form of a lightning dragon. Now be gone, with the sound of the thunderclap!" and with that, he guided the technique down, engulfing Itachi and obliterated the entire Uchiha Hideout in the process.

When the blast subsided, Itachi lay face down amongst the ruins of the Uchiha Hideout, his Akatsuki robe obliterated.

The lightning in Sasuke's palm subsided, his Sharingan deactivated, and he fell to his knees in exhaustion "It's done… it's finally over…" he looked around at the carnage.

"Is this… the death you had imagined for me?"

Sasuke froze.

Slowly, Itachi climbed back to his feet.

Furious over the fact that Itachi survived, Sasuke entered his second level "DAMN YOU! How?! How are you still alive?!" he got his answer.

Itachi was suddenly surrounded by crimson chakra taking the form of a skeleton "If I hadn't had this then I would've been obliterated. You really have gotten stronger… Sasuke…"

' _What the hell is that thing?'_

"Now it's my turn, I'm going to reveal to you my final trump card: the Susanoo."

"The Susanoo?"

"Yes, the one other jutsu. Once the Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu are awakened, it also took route in these eyes of mine. Like you said yourself Sasuke, always have an ace in the hole."

Sasuke got into a stance.

"Sasuke, is that it for your jutsu then? If you have anything else up your sleeve then now's your last chance to play it." light began shining through the clouds "The real battle is only just beginning." chakra skin began wrapping around the skeleton until Itachi's Susanoo was fully armored, complete with a sword and shield "What's the matter? Have you used up all of your chakra and run out of options?"

"What?" then Sasuke flinched.

" _I can give it to you."_ a voice hissed.

Sasuke clutched his shoulder in pain.

" _I can lend you the power that you need."_

"Dammit!"

" _You need me, don't you dear Sasuke?"_

Then Sasuke fell to his knees.

" _I thought you wanted to take revenge on Itachi. Now release me, release my power and you can fulfill your dream at last!"_ eight massive snakes burst from Sasuke's shoulder against his will, causing him to scream in pain.

Itachi was quick to recognize the jutsu "That feels like Orochimaru's Eight-Headed Serpent Jutsu."

The snakes moved forward.

Itachi inched forward and used his sword, the Totsuka Blade, to decapitate seven of the eight snakes.

The last remaining snake opened its mouth, and out from it climbed none other that Orochimaru, completely naked "At last…"

"And now it finally emerges!"

Orochimaru promptly regurgitated his Sword of Kusanagi "This is it, this is what I've been waiting for! Thanks to you the repressive chakra is gone, and now at last I have the chance to take over this child's body for good!"

Itachi's eyes snapped open.

"And so…"

Itachi stabbed Orochimaru through the chest using the Totsuka Blade.

"Did you truly believe that a puny attack like that could take down the likes of me?" then he froze.

"Well Sasuke, what will you do next then?"

"This sword, it can't be! The Totsuka Blade?! Itachi, it was hidden in you all along!" then he suddenly disappeared into the sword, along with the Eight-Headed Serpent Jutsu.

' _The Totsuka Blade is a sword of sealing, it traps and seals those it pierces in a genjutsu world of drunken stupor for all eternity. The blade itself is imbued with sealing jutsu and is a variant of the Kusanagi Blade. Orochimaru, you've long searched for that sword.'_ he finished sealing away Orochimaru, leaving only a single white snake behind "This is it… Sasuke…"

Now free of Orochimaru, Sasuke gripped his shoulder ' _He ripped Orochimaru straight out of me, and he even removed the Curse Mark in the process.'_

Itachi began hacking and coughing up blood.

' _Using that Susanoo appears to be awfully risky, he's been coughing up a lot blood.'_

"And now… your eyes are mine… I'll take my time retrieving them…" then he began coughing up even more blood.

Sasuke slowly staggered to his feet "Itachi… your power is something I alone could never hope to match up to… I can't win…" then he smirked "At least, that's what you'd expect me to say, right?"

' _What?'_

"Haven't you noticed? Throughout this entire battle, I haven't tried to activate my Sanda Sharingan even once."

' _Does he…?'_

"Like Shino said, while having an ace in the hole is good, having two aces is better. You think I didn't know about the Susanoo? Shisui had it too, and since then I've been coming up with all sorts of plans to counter its power. I've been letting Raijin's power build up all this time as a last resort, my plan being to finish it with one massive blast if need be." his Sanda Sharingan flared into life as he drew his sword "And now, after building up for this entire battle, it's ready!" his sword was coated with lightning "Do you see this Itachi? The Thunder Spirit himself has lent me it's power to end this battle!"

Itachi's Susanoo slashed.

Sasuke leapt into the air, a massive avatar made of pure lightning appearing behind him "This sword of mine burns with an awesome power!" a massive lightning sword appeared for the lightning avatar to wield "It's burning blade tells me to defeat you!" he formed a hand seal, and two Thunder Clones appeared, creating identical copies of the lightning avatar "Take this! My love, my pain, AND ALL OF MY SORROW! **THUNDER STYLE: CRESCENT MOON DANCE!"** all three charged forward.

Itachi's Susanoo slashed through two of the clones, dissipating them, the surge of lightning pushing him back.

" **FINAL STRIKE!"** Sasuke himself cut the Susanoo down with a diagonal slash down across the chest, the surge of lightning sending both brothers flying.

When it was over, Itachi was face down in the dirt.

Sasuke slowly limped over to him and knelt down ' _It's over… I really hope it is, that one really was my last attack. Now I'm completely spent.'_

Then Itachi struggled to get to his knees "Sasuke…"

"You're not going to take my eyes Itachi, unlike you I've learned what it means to fight for someone other than myself."

Itachi just mumbled something and reached out with his blood covered hand, then suddenly poked Sasuke on the forehead like he used to do when they were younger, before he finally collapsed to the ground, dead.

Sasuke stared down at Itachi's body, not bothering to notice the rain overhead ' _It's over… I've truly won…'_ he managed a slight smile ' _Father… mother… my clansmen… you can rest in peace… Naruto… Tatsu… Kin… I'll be home soon…'_ the last thing he saw before passing out was a blurry green figure approaching him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Naruto was losing his patience with the figure in front of him ' _Dammit, this is going nowhere! Wind, fire water, she counters every attack I throw at her!'_

"Now die!" the figure drew a tanto and charged.

' _Gonna have to use a Rasengan.'_

" **Earth Style: Planet Splitter!"**

The masked figure suddenly leapt away as the ground beneath her began splitting "Dammit! I suppose we'll have to finish this another time." and she disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Naruto looked around "What the-?"

"Relax." Dragon appeared in front of them, Sasuke slung over his shoulder.

"Sasuke!"

"Don't worry, he'll be fine. I'm taking him back to my hideout to be treated, the two of you are welcome to come if you wish." and he kept walking.

Naruto and Kin shared a look, but followed nonetheless.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Shikamaru's mind was racing ' _Dammit, no matter what we do none of our attacks have any effect on him._ He's just toying with us now, none of our formations have any effect. Kakashi."

"I know, I noticed too." Kakashi confirmed "Our timing has been dead on for all of our formations up until now, but all of our attacks have been passing right through his body."

"Thought so, and what exactly do you think about it?"

"No doubt about it, it's some special jutsu that's unique to him which makes it a real bother to us."

Then Zetsu showed up "I'm back."

"Well? How did it go?" asked Tobi.

" **It's over."**

' _That one was on the Akatsuki roster Kabuto left us.'_ Shikamaru noted.

"Sasuke has triumphed in the battle, Itachi Uchiha is now dead."

Kakashi and the rest froze ' _No way…'_

Tobi appeared just as surprised "What? I don't believe it! Kidding." then his voice changed, much lower "It's just as I expected."

"Sasuke really defeated Itachi?"

"Sasuke is down right now too." Zetsu told them "So what's next? I think he's in pretty bad shape."

Then Kakashi froze when he noticed something.

Tobi had a Sharingan hidden behind his mask "We're just going to have to finish this some other time."

' _That's a Sharingan… just who in the world is he?'_

"Later." then Tobi disappeared.

' _How? Who was that?'_

"Kakashi." a voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

Kakashi looked to see a female figure in a purple kimono standing in front of him "You're…"

"Don't worry, Sasuke will be fine. Dragon is collecting him as we speak. Come with me, I will take you to him." and she leapt off.

"Kakashi, what do you think?" asked Shikamaru.

"She's helped us before, let's proceed with caution." and Kakashi went on, with the rest following.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Zetsu arrived to find a bored looking Kisame standing in front of an injured and unconscious Jugo, Karin and Suigetsu " **Well at least you didn't waste time."**

"It wasn't even me, some girl with an Akatsuki cloak showed up and pummeled all three of them and took the Executioner's Blade, while that blonde girl just disappeared." Kisame told her "She must've been reversed summoned by contact or something."

" **I see."**

"So it's all over then is it?"

"Yes, it's finally settled. **Sasuke has won, and Itachi is dead. So what will you now Kisame?"**

"Well if Itachi isn't around anymore then I think I'll spread my wings and see where fate takes me."

"I see, well do what you please." and Zetsu left.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sasuke slowly regained consciousness to see a spiky roof above him ' _Where… Where am I?'_

"I treated your wounds."

Sasuke sat up and winced.

"Itachi is dead, you won. But you sustained a great deal of damage and you've yet to completely recover, try not to move around too much." a figure stepped out of the shadows, revealing herself to be Izumi "I brought you here to tell you something."

Sasuke looked down.

"And you don't care in the slightest, maybe you'll want to listen if I put it another way. It's about your brother, Itachi Uchiha."

Sasuke slowly looked at him "What?"

"You think you know everything about your brother, but you actually don't. First…" she formed a hand seal, and a passage appeared "Remember, only two of you in here at once."

Then Naruto rushed in, with Kakashi right behind him "Sasuke!"

"And lower your voice, remember that he's injured."

"Why did you bring us here?" asked Kakashi.

"Because there's something the three of you need to know about Itachi Uchiha."

Kakashi's eye narrowed, along with Naruto.

"You three think you know everything about Itachi, but in reality you know nothing. Let me start by introducing myself. Like Sasuke I happen to be an Uchiha survivor, as well as one of the few who knows the truth about Itachi Uchiha. But first, Kakashi I need you to form a Shadow Clone."

"...Alright." Kakashi did so.

"Now I need the clone to activate its Sharingan."

Kakashi's clone hesitantly.

"Alright, now everyone step back if you don't want to get caught."

Then Sasuke's left eye suddenly took the form of Itachi's Mangekyo Sharingan, causing black flames to appear and emerge and dissipate the clone, and he held his eye in pain "What… What was that… just now?"

"That was the Amaterasu, which Itachi had implanted in you." Izumi knelt down beside him.

"What are you talking about?"

"To put it simply, Itachi placed a certain jutsu inside you in order to kill a certain someone, or more like keep that someone away from you. I theorized that he set up this trap in order to activate you saw a certain Sharingan."

"And again I ask, just what are you talking about?"

"Itachi did something to you before he died."

"Wait, you mean-?"

"That's right, at the very end for your sake Itachi transferred his visual prowess to you."

"What are you saying?" asked Naruto "Why would Itachi of all people do something like that?"

"The answer is quite simple." then Dragon appeared in the room "He did that to Sasuke because, he was trying to protect him."

Sasuke's head snapped towards Dragon, unable to process this, with Naruto and Kakashi not being much better "Protect… to protect me… you can't be serious."

"As Izumi said before, you think you know everything about your older brother but you know nothing, none of you three do."

"...Keep spouting nonsense like this and I _will_ kill you."

"You're making this much more difficult than has to be, but then again I suppose it's only natural when you're hearing this from a complete stranger. So let's try something else." he removed his mask.

Kakashi's jaw literally dropped through his mask "It can't be… you're… Kazuma?"

"It's been a long time hasn't it Kakashi, Sasuke?"

"Wait a minute, then what about her?"

"I suppose I should reveal myself as well." Izumi removed her mask as well.

Sasuke's jaw dropped "You're my brother's girlfriend."

Izumi didn't look amused, but she did blush "We're not going into that right now."

"Hold on, you said Itachi set this up to keep him away from a certain person." Kakashi pointed out "Who was it?"

"Itachi mentioned it didn't he Sasuke? That he wasn't alone that night." Kazuma noted.

Sasuke nodded slowly "So you're saying…"

"The Akatsuki you fought, the one with the mask, was Madara Uchiha."

"No way!" Naruto blurted out suddenly "Madara is a women?!"

"...What?"

"That Akatsuki with the mask I fought!"

"No that was someone else, I'm talking about the one going by Tobi."

"Shut up!" Sasuke exploded "None of that matters anymore, just get out of my sight you imposter!"

"You need to hear this Sasuke, you have a right too. It's about the life of your brother who risked everything for the sake of the shinobi world, the Hidden Leaf Village, and most of all for you, his younger brother. You, all three of you, must know how Itachi Uchiha lived. Itachi implanted the Amaterasu into your eye because he wanted to make sure Madara never told you. What I'm about to tell you, the only ones who knew were myself, Izumi, advisors Koharu and Homura, Danzo and the Third Hokage. With the Third Hokage dead, there are only three elders left who know this and they most likely will never reveal this. The truth about Itachi would fade with time, just as Itachi himself wished."

"Then why are you telling me this?"

"Because you have a right to know."

"What exactly are you saying Kazuma? What are you trying to tell us here? Itachi tried to protect me? Tell me the truth about Itachi?"

"Remember Sasuke, think back carefully and remember your brother, the kind and gentle older brother that he truly was."

Sasuke froze, recalling a conversation with Itachi about why the crest of the Leaf Police Force bore the symbol of the Uchiha clan "No, it's impossible… he didn't want to protect me… he just tried to kill me… he tried to steal my eyes…"

"Calm down Sasuke." Kazuma grabbed him by the shoulders "Deep breaths or you'll end up passing out. I'm not letting go of you until you do."

Sasuke took several deep breaths, but he was still in denial "He… Itachi was my enemy… he killed our mother and father… he slaughtered our entire clan… he was a rogue ninja… a member of the Akatsuki… he was despicable… he was my main goal…"

"That fateful night, it is true that he slaughtered the entire Uchiha clan and fled the Hidden Leaf Village."

"Then…"

"However, it was his mission to do so. He was ordered by the elders of the Hidden Leaf."

Sasuke froze, along with Naruto and Kakashi.

"Shocking isn't it? That's just the beginning."

"You said it was his mission?"

"Yes, that night Itachi set aside his personal feelings and fulfilled his mission."

"I still don't understand." Kakashi spoke "You two were reported dead that night, how are you both here?"

"We'll get to that in a moment. This is a long story, but I assure you that every word of it is the truth. Anyway, Itachi ended up being a sacrificial pawn in a longstanding power struggle."

"A sacrificial pawn…" Sasuke murmured.

"But first, I must begin with a history lesson, the history of our village. The Hidden Leaf Village is large now, but waves of history churn at its base. In particular, discrimination towards the Uchiha clan."

"Discrimination towards the Uchiha…?"

"Originally, the Hidden Leaf Village was formed by a group of ninja that had previously been in conflict, with the Uchiha clan being among them, as well as what remained of my clan, though most of it had previously died out. When the Hidden Leaf Village was founded, your clan held central power with the other clans. But after they failed to take the seat of the First Hokage, the Uchiha gradually began falling from power. Madara grew particularly bitter over this, and he attempted to convince the Uchiha clan to protest the government of the Senju but was shunned by his own clan for wanting to start another conflict. To make matters worse in that regard, his own clansmen believe he stole his younger brother's eyes after killing him when he had done so willingly. In an attempt to get revenge on the Leaf, Madara left the village and fought with the First Hokage using the Kyuubi in what would be known as the Final Valley. It's said that Madara died during that conflict."

"But that was so long ago, if he didn't die then sure he died of old age." Kakashi protested.

"I don't know the specifics, but what I do know is that there's a psychopath out there claiming to be Madara Uchiha. Anyway, in order to prevent the rise of another traitor Hashirama Senju's younger brother Tobirama became the Second Hokage and bestowed a special responsibility upon the Uchiha clan as proof of his trust. This was how the Leaf Police Force came to be. The truth is that it actually removed the Uchiha from the governing body of the village and placed the entire clan under suspicion in one fell swoop. In time there came to be some Uchiha who recognized Madara's true motives, and they grew an anti-establishment faction that inherited Madara's will. Time passed and the leadership stayed in the hands of the Senju, and the Uchiha began to bitterly see themselves as lackeys to the Senju. What Madara feared came to pass, and one more incident sealed the demise of the Uchiha."

"The attack of the Kyuubi…"

"Exactly Kakashi. Only the visual prowess of the Uchiha can tame and control the Kyuubi, unless you're a jinchuuriki but as far as I know there has never been one who could control the Kyuubi, so the elders surmised that an Uchiha was behind the attack. But it's seen as a natural spontaneous disaster and people believe the Uchiha had nothing to do with it. It's true, the clan itself didn't. But one man did have a hand."

"Madara…" Naruto growled.

"Right. Despite that, unjust suspicions persisted saying that the Uchiha had tried to stage an insurrection and take power to claim leadership over the Leaf. As a result, the Uchiha were put under strict surveillance by the ANBU Black Ops and forced to relocate to the outskirts of the village, resulting in them becoming completely isolated. The Third Hokage was the only one who voiced opposition to the retreatment, but it was unfortunately in vain. In the end the Uchiha clan was simply not trusted, resulting in the discrimination against your clan. Distrust gave birth to hatred, and eventually their suspicions became reality. The Uchiha clan started plotting a Coup d'etat to take over the Hidden Leaf Village, resulting in the Hidden Leaf's leaders planting a spy within the clan. Can you guess who that spy was?"

"No way…"

"You guessed it, that spy was none other than Itachi Uchiha. That was the beginning of Itachi's suffering."

"Wait a minute." Sasuke stopped him "This is a lot to take in. You're saying my clan was being discriminated? They formed a coup d'e tat? Itachi was a spy?"

"Despite being an Uchiha you were told nothing because you were so young, none of the students were told about this, but I promise that every word I speak is the truth. Your father, clan head Fugaku Uchiha, was the reluctant leader, while Itachi was a spy who entered the ANBU Black Ops. However, in reality it was actually the opposite. Itachi was supplying the village with information on the Uchiha. In other words, he was acting as a double agent. I can't even imagine what a heavy burden that was. You may never understand his reasons because you've never lived through the horrors of war like Itachi has, and like I have."

"I think I do." Kakashi murmured "Kazuma, you and Itachi were always pacifists, with kind and gentle hearts. You hated conflict in any way shape or form, and you always sought peace."

"You're exactly right Kakashi. During the Third Great Ninja War, when Itachi was only 4 and I was 5, we both saw many people die. We hated it, and we decided to do something about it."

"Something you should never have to experience at that age."

"War is hell, that's what turned us into pacifists to begin with. Itachi especially always had the welfare and peace of the village foremost in his mind. Instead of being bound by obligation to his clan, he was a shinobi devoted to his village. He voluntarily accepted a top secret mission, an eye for an eye, for they would need the Sharingan to face the Uchiha. The mission was to annihilate everyone who knew about the coup, Danzo specifically pointed that part out, claiming that while it was vulgar, letting anyone who knew about the coup survive was a risk that could not be taken. I despise the idea, but I knew he was right."

"But where does Madara come into this?" asked Naruto.

"Madara returned to the village to take advantage of the clan's hatred and planned to take advantage of the conflict, but Itachi and I discovered him. Itachi asked for his help in wiping out those involved with the coup and offered revenge against them for his treatment years before."

"And Madara agreed." Sasuke guessed.

"Exactly. Now this is where Izumi and I come into the picture. I brought Itachi and Izumi together and we made a plan: Itachi would act as an inside agent in the Akatsuki, working against Madara to keep him from directly harming the Leaf, while Izumi and I would act as outside agents against the Akatsuki, foiling any plots or schemes that would indirectly harm the Leaf. The night of the massacre, Izumi faked her death using a Sharingan jutsu known as Izanagi, a jutsu that allows you to return to life at the cost of sight in one eye. I faked my death using a blood clone, mainly so Madara wouldn't go after Tatsu and I could protect him from the shadows."

"So that's why Tatsu thought Itachi killed you."

"Yes. When the night came, Itachi killed Izumi, making sure she had activated Izanagi, and then killed those involved in the coup. This is where Madara botched the deal, he went against the plan and killed every single Uchiha he came across."

"But what about the other students?"

"Itachi and Danzo made an agreement, the students and younger Uchiha ninja would be kept underground and trained as part of the Foundation until the day came that Madara would be brought to justice. After all, wiping out an _entire_ clan would severely weaken the Leaf's military power."

"...That makes sense, I guess."

"I can't begin to imagine what emotional trauma Itachi must have gone through during all of this when he learned of what had to be done, he was faced with a terrible choice. The choice to raise his hand against his fellow brethren must have destroyed him, but if ninja as formidable as the Uchiha clan would revolt then both the Leaf and the Land of Fire would be shaken tremendously. Other nations would take advantage of the situation and invade, and it could easily have become the trigger for the Fourth Great Ninja War. The selfish desires of the Uchiha clan would end up sacrificing the lives of hundreds of innocent people that have nothing to do with the shinobi world and countless innocents would die once again. Tell me, if you were in Itachi's shoes then what would you have done?" he left it at that for a moment.

"I don't get something though." Naruto spoke up "How come she has both eyes then?"

"She transplanted her mother's eyes into her own to gain an Eternal Mangekyo. Back to the main story, Itachi made up his mind. He himself would drop the curtain on the history of his own clan. Of course he held no hatred for the Uchiha, except for the ones who accused him of killing Shisui. He simply did what had to be done. The discrimination by the village and the object of their antagonism, he willingly shouldered all of the blame himself. No one should ever question the decisions and sacrifices Itachi made. The Third Hokage tried to resolve the situation through other means, with Danzo supporting him to an extent, and attempted to do open negotiations with the Uchiha to reach a compromise. But time ran out, and Danzo knew that there was no other option. Shisui also knew about Madara, he tried to use his Mangekyo Sharingan to stop Madara from ever harming the village, but he failed, and Madara ripped out one of his eyes, though Shisui retrieved it and retreated. He gave that eye to Danzo, claiming that he'd rather have him have it than Madara. He then entrusted his remaining eye to Itachi and killed himself, awakening Itachi's Mangekyo Sharingan."

Sasuke and the rest took a minute to process that "You mean…"

"The night drew near, Itachi knew his fate to become known as a criminal who knew his own clan and drive the Kamikaze clan even further to extinction, to bear the burden of disgrace and become a rogue ninja, with all of that being part of the mission. Itachi completely fulfilled his duty, except for that one condition with Danzo. He could not bring himself to let the Foundation, which had used the exams used by the Blood Mist Village, get ahold of his younger brother. Afterwards, Itachi and I both appealed to the Third Hokage, pleading for him to protect both you and Tatsu. After that, he threatened Danzo and then all three of us left the village. If anything were to happen to you or him, we would leak all of the intel on the Leaf he had to enemy nations. We worried about the two of you above all else, and yet we couldn't tell you the full truth. So Itachi told you as much as he could. He gave you a reason to seek revenge against him and hoped it would make you stronger. I also knew that Tatsu's influence would make sure you had other things to live for. Itachi wanted you to believe the Uchiha was a proud clan from the Hidden Leaf Village, he begged the Hokage to make sure you wouldn't learn the truth until he thought you were ready, and from the moment he left the village he resigned himself to battling you to the death in order to bestow new powers upon you. That is the truth behind Itachi."

"It's a lie… it has to be… he's repeatedly tried to kill me…"

"Think about this, if Itachi wanted to kill you then you wouldn't be here right now."

"He's even used the Mangekyo Sharingan against me, there was no question he was trying to kill me."

"Even your contingency plans were factored into his calculations, he had to pressure you as hard as he could during that battle. Surely he figured out why, you understand don't you? He wanted to free you of the Curse Mark and Orochimaru, and the death of the one closest to you. It was a battle to awaken your Mangekyo Sharingan. Itachi carefully set up everything in that battle, diverting your attention from the truth by pretending to the very end that he was trying to steal your eyes. Are you starting to see the truth now?"

"You're lying, I know it."

"Itachi wanted to make sure there was absolutely no chance of you discovering the truth, he fed you lies to make sure you wouldn't trust Madara. He even implanted Amaterasu in your eyes."

"Do you really expect me to believe this? Itachi was pure evil, he was a criminal who slaughtered our clan and became an Akatsuki!"

"Just because someone is an Akatsuki doesn't necessarily make him evil." he held up a hand to shut Naruto up "Remember Sasori of the Red Sand?"

Sasuke's comeback died in his throat.

"Itachi took the burden of all of this on himself and fled the village of his birth, and he joined the Akatsuki as a spy from the inside like I told you before, against the organization that threatened his village. He always had the welfare of the Hidden Leaf in his mind, just as he always thought of yours as well Sasuke. Itachi appeared in the Leaf after the Third Hokage was killed by Orochimaru, after the death of the man who had promised to protect you. He wanted to remind those who may wish to harm you that he was still alive and still a threat. And if you're still doubting me, let me say this. You're still alive, aren't you?"

Sasuke shut up abruptly.

"Those eyes of yours did not perceive a single truth about Itachi, you weren't able to pierce through any of the illusions he created. Itachi killed his friends, his superiors, his father, his mother, but he couldn't kill his little brother. He killed every shred of feeling in his heart in order to slaughter his own kin for the sake of the Leaf. But he just couldn't bring himself to kill you. Do you understand what that means? To him, your life was even more precious than the Leaf itself. Until the moment of his death, even after he died, it was all for you, to confer on you new powers by allowing you to defeat him. He had avenged the Uchiha clan, he made you the hero of the Hidden Leaf Village. Ravaged by illness and painfully aware of his impending death, he forcefully prolonged his life with medication all for your sake because he had to fight you and die in your presence. For the peace of the Hidden Leaf, but most of all for you Sasuke, he wanted to die being known as a criminal and a traitor. He accepted disgrace in the place of honor and hatred in the place of love, and yet Itachi still died with a smile on his face. He bequeathed to you the name of the Uchiha name, still fooling you to the very end." he opened up the secret passageway "Do you want some time to think about this?"

Sasuke said nothing, he just got up and walked out of the room without a word.

Naruto and Kakashi shared a look, one thought on their minds ' _Woah…'_

Then Shikamaru and the rest came in "What happened? What did they tell you?"

"Oh for the love of, we should've done it like this." Izumi promptly put Shikamaru in a genjutsu, letting him hear the whole story in mere seconds.

"Woah…"

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Sasuke stared out at the sea, tears freely streaming down his face ' _Itachi… after everything I've been through… all these years… it was all a lie…'_

Kakashi came up behind him "Sasuke."

"Kakashi, after everything you've heard, how do you see my brother now?"

Kakashi let out a sigh "In all honesty, I feel that he's the sort of man we should all strive to be like."

"I see."

"So will you come back?"

"...I will. But on one condition."

"What?"

Sasuke turned to face him, revealing his new Mangekyo Sharingan "I want my brother to be seen as the hero he was. He of all people deserves a better fate than being seen as a traitor."

"...Come on, let's go."

 **A/N:**

 **Yes that was a G Gundam reference when Sasuke hit Itachi with his Thunder Style: Crescent Moon Dance, expect a lot of those.**

 **The new flak jackets are based on the ones worn by the Leaf after the war, in case any of you were wondering.**

 **Yes, Sasuke is returning to the Leaf. No, he will not be fighting Pain, and neither will Tatsu. Naruto will have help in that fight, just not from them.**

 **Take a wild guess if you can figure out who that figure is that fought Naruto.**


	14. Naruto's Grief, Surpassing the Master

An eventful month had passed since the Itachi Pursuit Mission, the battles with Deidara and Itachi, and the revelation of the truth behind Itachi, and many things had occurred:

The Foundation had been redesigned as a new branch of the ANBU with new training methods, along with about 12 other Uchiha around his age or about 2 to 3 years older.

Sasuke had been welcomed back to the village, but he still had 2 more weeks of ANBU surveillance.

The truth behind the Uchiha Massacre and Itachi's heroism had been revealed, and now Itachi was being thought of as a hero who sacrificed his life for the village.

Tatsu had been working on a special training method for Lee involving the Leaf Dragon God.

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Naruto sat on his bed in his apartment, wondering about the mission ' _I don't get it, whoever that Akatsuki woman was she was able to counter every attack I threw at her except for the Rasengan. Then there's Itachi, in that genjutsu he put one of his crows inside of me. Then the masked guy that Shikamaru and the rest faced, what's his deal?'_

"Naruto." a voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

Naruto looked to see Sasuke sitting by his window "Sasuke."

"Come on, the Tsunade wants to talk to you about something."

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Outside the Hokage's mansion, Naruto saw Gamabunta and Gamakichi "Chief Toad and Gamakichi?"

"Yo, what's up Naruto?" Gamakichi waved.

"Hey, what are you guys doing here? Did something happen?"

"Well actually-"

"Gamakichi keep your trap shut!" Gamabunta barked "Let the boss and Tsunade handle it, they know what they're doing."

Naruto blinked "Well that isn't weird in the slightest, what the hell is going on?"

"Don't worry about it, let's go." Sasuke kept walking.

' _What's with him? I know the truth about Itachi really shook him up, but he's being kind of secretive.'_

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Tsunade looked to see Sasuke and Naruto enter the room "You're both here."

Naruto looked around to see Tatsu, Shikamaru, Dosu, Ino and several toads in the room ' _What the hell?'_

"So this is Jiraiya-boy's student, is it?" the old frog spoke.

Tsunade nodded "Yes, this is Naruto Uzumaki, the Child of Prophecy you spoke of."

Naruto looked at the old frog "So what's up with the ceramic old geezer frog?"

"Pipe down, watch your mouth Naruto. He is one of the two great sages of Mount Moyboku, Lord Fukasaku. He travelled all the way here just so he could speak with you."

' _Huh?'_

"Well to be more accurate, I'm a great sage toad." Fukasaku pointed out "But never mind that, it doesn't matter. Answer me this, are you Jiraiya-boy's student or aren't you?"

"Jiraiya-boy? A boy? Don't treat the Pervy Sage like a kid, who does this old geezer frog think he is anyway?"

"I told you already, watch your mouth!" Tsunade hissed.

' _What's her problem?'_

"Naruto, he's the one who taught Sage jutsu to Master Jiraiya." Shizune told him "He's Jiraiya's master."

"Wait, this guy's Pervy Sage's teacher?"

Fukasaku burst out laughing "So you call him the Pervy Sage do you? I've never heard a more fitting nickname for Jiraiya-boy."

"What the hell does this Geezer Sage want? What did he come so far to talk to me about anyway?"

"I'm not exactly sure where to begin this, but let me is. I suppose the most important thing at the moment is…" Fukasaku let out a long sigh "I'm afraid Jiraiya-boy has died in battle."

Naruto froze, having trouble processing the information "Wh-What are you talking about?"

"I know that this is very sudden, so I understand if you don't believe me. For some time now, rumors have been circulating that the leader of the Akatsuki was operating out of the Hidden Rain Village, so Jiraiya-boy went there in person to verify whether or not these rumors were true."

Dosu's head snapped towards him "Wait a minute, the leader of the Akatsuki is in the Hidden Rain Village? From what I know that village is very difficult to infiltrate, it's entirely closed off from the outside world."

"Yes, but Master Jiraiya was especially skilled in infiltration and espionage tactics." Kakashi told him.

Fukasaku nodded "Yes, exactly. Jiraiya-boy encountered Pain, the leader of the Akatsuki. However, it turns out that Pain was a former student of Jiraiya-boy's from many many years ago."

"Wait, what do you mean he was his student?" asked Tatsu.

"I don't know the particulars, but Jiraiya-boy called him Nagato."

"That goes way back to a time during the chaos of the Third Great Ninja War." Tsunade told them "The Hidden Rain Village had become a battlefield, and Jiraiya had taken some war orphans under his wing. Who would've imagined those kids…"

"But to take out someone like Jiraiya, that's absurd." Tatsu pointed out "How the hell did he pull that off?"

Fukasaku looked him dead in the eye "It was because Pain possesses the Rinnegan." he got shocked looks.

"The Rinnegan?"

"Yes."

"The eye of the Sage of the Six Paths?"

"Yes."

"...It's finally happened, I've been officially brain f*cked."

"The fabled ocular jutsu, the Rinnegan. Its power was supposedly beyond anything you could imagine. But there's more."

"What, next you're gonna say there were two people with the Rinnegan?"

"No. There were six."

"...I'm just gonna shut up now."

"I don't know exactly how this is possible, perhaps there's some trick behind it. I believe that Jiraiya-boy discovered the secret behind the six of them in that final terrible battle, but…"

"But he got wrecked to the point where he could barely talk?"

"Even after his throat had been crushed by Pain and he knew the end was near, Jiraiya-boy left a message before he collapsed." Fukasaku removed his cloak and turned around, revealing the message on his back "This is his message."

"Looks like some sort of code."

"I'm sure he did this to prevent Pain from catching on." Fukasaku put his robe back on "And that's everything I know about Jiraiya-boy's efforts."

"I wonder what he was trying to tell us." Tsunade wondered "Maybe we can decode this, then hopefully we'll understand."

Naruto finally spoke up, his voice low "You let him go, is that right Granny?"

"...That's right."

"Why would you ever let him do something so risky? You knew Pervy Sage better than anyone granny, how could you send him somewhere so dangerous alone?!"

"Stop it Naruto." Kakashi cut him off "You of all people oughta know Lady Tsunade's feelings."

Naruto said nothing, he just started towards the door.

"Naruto, where are you going?" asked Ino.

"If the Pervy Sage had been the Fifth Hokage then he never would've let Granny Tsunade take a risk like that, never." then Naruto left the room, the door slamming behind him.

Tatsu stopped Ino from going after him "Just give him time, he'll need it." then he looked over towards Fukasaku "Sorry about him, do you want me to-"

"No need, that's quite alright." Fukasaku waved him off "But about that Child of Prophecy vision I mentioned earlier."

"Naruto is the Child of Prophecy, I know that for a fact."

"I can see that this child truly loved and admired Jiraiya-boy, it makes me hope more than anything that you're right."

Tsunade reflected on her last conversation with Jiraiya before he left ' _Jiraiya…'_

"Tsunade-girl. Tsunade-girl!"

Tsunade snapped out of it.

"You alright?" asked Tatsu, knowing the answer.

"Yes, I'm fine now. I apologize."

"You've received some very sad news, no one can blame you for being distraught. But that said, you have a vital duty to perform." Fukasaku pointed out "You must protect the village, it's essential that you stay strong."

"I know."

"In any case, let's discuss the clues that Jiraiya-boy left for us. In addition to the message he's left on my back, he's given us other leads as well. A Hidden Rain ninja that Jiraiya-boy managed to capture is inside the belly of that frog. And one last thing remains." he formed a hand seal and summoned another toad "Inside this toad is one of the bodies of Pain that Jiraiya-boy managed to kill, one of the six."

"Pain's body?"

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As he wandered through the streets, Naruto stared at a collection of Make-Out Series books, reflecting on his training with Jiraiya.

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Fukasaku and the rest looked at the body of Pain from inside the toad "This is Pain."

"The ripple pattern, is that the legendary Rinnegan?" asked Shizune.

"That's correct, if we study this body then I believe we may find clues on how to defeat Pain."

"A shinobi's corpse is full of information, we'll need skilled medical ninja and then we'll launch a full autopsy on him." Tsunade decided "Shizune."

"Right, I'll take care of it." Shizune assured her.

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Fukasaku looked at the photo of the code on his back "The photo's very clear." he handed it back to Tsunade "I have given you everything that was entrusted to me."

Tsunade nodded "Yes, indeed."

"I will return home now but let me know what you find, since Jiraiya-boy's student is here you can send him to contact me at Mount Myoboku."

"Thank you very much, I promise you that we will find a way somehow to defeat Pain."

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Naruto kept wandering around the village, reflecting on his time with Jiraiya ' _Pervy Sage…'_

"Hey Naruto." a voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

Naruto looked ahead to see Lee in front of him "Bushy Brow."

"I hear you guys have been really active on missions lately, everybody's talking about you, Tatsu and Sasuke. How about we head over to Ichiraku and catch up over some ramen."

"...Maybe later." and Naruto kept walking.

"What could be so bad that he resisted ramen?"

"Something that made his heart shatter in the most un-youthful way possible."

Lee looked to see Guy standing behind him "Guy-sensei. What do you mean?"

Guy let out a long sigh "I just heard from Kakashi, something happened."

"What?"

"Master Jiraiya of the legendary Sannin has been killed in battle."

Lee froze "What?"

"It was the leader of the Akatsuki."

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Danzo stared at the photo of Jiraiya's code "So this is the code?"

"That's right, I'm placing you and your men in charge of this." Tsunade told him "The guys in the Cypher Division don't work this late, that's why I'm having your guys do it."

"Very well."

"If you'll excuse me." then Tsunade made her way out of the room, shutting the door behind her, and reflected on her past with Jiraiya, tears streaming down her face "You stupid fool…"

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After taking a late night walk and buying a popsicle, Naruto sat on a bench, tears streaming down his face ' _Pervy Sage…'_

"Naruto." a soft voice brought him back.

Naruto looked to see Lee sit down beside him "Bushy Brow."

"I heard about what happened to Master Jiraiya, I know this probably won't help but I really am sorry."

"All I ever wanted was to have him keep watching over me, I wanted him to see me become Hokage. But I only showed him the worst, most uncool side of me. I'm still so…"

"Naruto, listen to me." Lee grabbed his shoulder "All Master Jiraiya ever had was praise for you. He was always boasting about you, he even kept saying that you were like his own grandchild. It's true, he had faith that you were the one who would inherit his will, and he truly believed that you'd become one of the greatest Hokage in history one day. He's still watching over you and he always will be, even at this very minute. It doesn't matter where he is, I know for a fact that he wouldn't be happy to see you this upset and miserable over this. Naruto, I speak for everyone in the village when I say this. Just go back to being the you he praised so highly." he broke the popsicle in two and took half "You can't just stay here and mope like this, you're a distinguished of Master Jiraiya, one of the legendary Sannin, acknowledged by the great Jiraiya." he held out one of the halves.

Naruto slowly accepted one of the halves "Thanks… Bushy Brow… Lee…"

"Don't mention it, what are teammates for? After all, we're both members of Team Dragon right?"

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Morning came.

Danzo came to check on the decoding "Status report."

"We've checked over it several times sir, this definitely isn't a Hidden Leaf code." one of the ANBU told him "It doesn't correspond to any of our algorithms."

"I see."

"But Jiraiya wrote this in his final moments." Tatsu appeared in the window sill "I doubt he'd be able to come up with anything too complicated."

"That's true. It's a string of numbers so it's most likely a shared key encryption."

"Well yeah but can it be decoded?"

Then one of the members of the Cypher Division, Shiho, came in "Frankly without the key, it's impossible to decipher the code."

"The key?"

"Yes, basically without knowing the rules that govern this code we simply can't decrypt it. Unless we could find something from Jiraiya's life that could be the key, I doubt we'll ever crack the code."

"Where do you suggest we start looking?"

"I wouldn't know how I'm afraid, but perhaps someone that was close to him would recognize it. Perhaps they would know the key, but given the circumstances of his death he may have come up with this encryption hastily to prevent the enemy from figuring out his message. We can be sure of nothing, consider who he left the message for and go and ask them. Perhaps then you'll find some clues."

"Well that would leave three, them being Naruto, Tsunade or Kakashi. Thanks for the tip, if I figure out anything then I'll come right back."

Shiho's cheeks turned pink and she began fixing her hair in a mirror "Sure, I'll be here."

' _Sasuke's right, fangirls are so easy.'_

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Kakashi looked at the code "9, 31, 8, 106, 7, 207, 15."

"Do you have any ideas at all?" asked Tatsu "Anything helps at this point, did any of these numbers ever come up in a conversation with Jiraiya that you can recall?"

"Let me think…" then he stopped.

"What, you found something?"

' _This one, 106…'_ he recalled Jiraiya mentioning Tsunade's bust size to be 106 centimeters "No, that can't be it."

"What?"

"Nothing's coming to me, why don't you try Lady Tsunade or Naruto next?"

"I already tried Tsunade, she wasn't any help, so that leaves Naruto."

"Aside from the code, I'm also worried about him."

"I'll do what I can to cheer him up, don't worry."

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Tatsu rang Naruto's doorbell "Hey Naruto, you in there?"

Then the door cracked open and Naruto peeked out "Hey Tatsu, what's up? What do you want?"

"Well for starters, how about you let me come in and stop acting like a hermit or a goblin. It's creeping me out."

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Tatsu showed Naruto the code "How about it? Do these numbers mean anything to you?"

Naruto just stared, a daze look in his eyes.

"Hey numbnuts you still with me?"

He kept staring.

"Earth to stupid."

Staring.

"DUDE!"

Naruto yelped and fell off the bed "What was that for?"

"You're the one staring off into space, you brought that on yourself."

"Oh yeah, sorry. So what were you saying?"

"...Okay you're hopeless. Get up stupid, you're coming with me."

"Where to?"

"Just shut up and put some pants on, nobody needs to see gama boxers."

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Naruto was rather confused to find himself outside the hospital "Why the hell would you bring me here?"

Tatsu sighed "Just shut up and be patient, she's coming out right now."

"Who?"

Then a very pregnant Yugao came out "Oh, you came."

"What the hell? Yugao-sensei is that you? Were you hospitalized for eating too much barbecue? Your stomach is bigger than Choji's!"

Tatsu smacked Naruto on the back of the head "She's pregnant not fat you idiot, how many brain cells die every minute I wonder."

"Wait, so then you mean she's-?"

"She's pregnant, I literally just said that. Seriously, I think I see smoke coming out of your head."

Yugao sighed "Tatsu, you don't have to come every time."

"I don't care if I do or not, I made a promise to Hayate-sensei and I have no intention of breaking my word."

"You're making him proud by doing what you are." and she went on her way.

"I really hope so."

"Hey Tatsu, what exactly did Hayate-sensei ask you to do?" asked Naruto.

"Something I still would've gladly done if he asked me to or not. Their child is going to be my student."

"Really?"

"Yeah, Hayate-sensei entrusted me with that and Shika is gonna be in the same boat when Kurenai and Asuma have their kid."

"Wait, seriously?"

"Yeah." Tatsu let out a long and heavy sigh "I'm sorry about Jiraiya, really I am. I lost my teacher just like you, I understand exactly what you're going through right now, every single bit of it. But whining, sulking and crying isn't going to make things better. Face the facts Naruto, the two of us should be way past that point in our lives by now."

"What do you mean?"

"Hayate-sensei imparted a lot of knowledge to me, some lessons were important and some were really minor but to me it didn't matter. The same could be said for you right? An infinite number of priceless things, so I think the time has finally come to stop being students and become teachers in our own right. It's gonna be a lot of work and suffering, but we don't have the right to complain, eventually you're gonna be the one paying for the ramen and your student will be calling you Naruto-sensei. After all, we have to grow up at some point if we hope to become awesome shinobi and men like Hayate and Jiraiya were right?"

Naruto said nothing, he just took it all in.

"Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"...Yeah, I think I do. Tatsu, thank you."

"So pull yourself together and get some clean pants on, you've got a hell of a lot of work ahead of you." he held up the paper with the code "You in?"

"Hell yeah I'm in, now let's do this."

"Pants first, code second. Anyway, overall Jiraiya left us three sources of information."

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Tsunade entrusted the interrogation of the Hidden Rain ninja captured by Jiraiya to Ibiki and his team.

That was the first source.

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Shizune and Kin were heading the autopsy of the body of Pain that Jiraiya had sent back for them.

That was the second source.

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Naruto stared at the picture of the code "Hmm…"

"You've been staring like that for a while." Tatsu noted "Do you notice anything? Anything at all? I already checked with both Tsunade and Kakashi and both of them were pretty much useless so we can only guess that Jiraiya left this code with you in mind. There has to be something there, something we're overlooking. Tell us anything that comes into your mind, anything at all."

"Well there is one thing that's been bothering me since I saw it."

"What is it?"

"Well there are all those numbers on there right? So why is there one katakana letter among all of them?"

"Wait, you said katakana? Where do you see a katakana in this code?" asked Danzo.

"See? Right here." Naruto pointed.

"But that's just a number 9." Tatsu pointed out.

"That's what I thought at first too but that's not it, look again. It's not a number at all, it's the katakana letter ta."

"Well yeah I guess you'd interpret it that way, but that stretch is as big as you are blonde. What makes you think it's ta anyway?"

"Well you know Pervy Sage, always writing books. He was a writer after all and I travelled all over with him, wherever we went he always made me read his handwritten drafts and asked me what I thought about them. They were really boring though."

"Of course you would find a porn book to be boring."

"Not the point. Anyway, each time he used the letter ta it was hard to read because whenever I saw it it looked like the number 9 to me."

"Wait a moment." Danzo stared hard at the code, then turned to one of his ANBU "Bring us a sample of Jiraiya's handwriting."

"Yes sir." the ANBU disappeared and returned with a book with a sample Jiraiya's writing inside it.

"What you're referring to is Jiraiya's penmanship quirk, a habit most writers have. Whenever Jiraiya wrote the katakana letter ta, he had a habit of drawing the first stroke shorter than most so the first and third strokes are unnecessarily connected, and since he rounds his second stroke the entire letter looks like the number 9."

"Wait a second." Tatsu checked his copy of Tales of a Gutsy Ninja "Jiraiya wrote this but I don't see it in here."

"That was most likely written before this habit developed." Danzo took the photo and compared it to the sample.

"It's exactly the same. Jiraiya must've planned this, he knew that Naruto was the only person who would recognize that quirk." then Tatsu rounded on Naruto "You idiot, why the hell didn't you mention something that important sooner?"

"What's the big deal about knowing that it's the letter ta?"

"How have my brain cells not melted through my nose from listening to you?" then he suddenly paused "Wait, that's it. It was back when you were reading Jiraiya's manuscripts, that's when you found out about his quirk. The code must refer to the book you were reading. There must be more clues somewhere in some of his works too, the other numbers must refer to a word order or a number of lines or a word count or even something like a page number. It has to be related to the encryption key. Naruto, which book were you reading?"

"Let's see… which one was it?"

"Fine then, just tell me exactly how many of Jiraiya's books have been published."

"Counting the one you hold, four." Danzo answered almost immediately "Three of them belong to the Make Out series."

"...Why do you know that? Nevermind, that's not too many so all we have to do is check all of them."

"It's probably this one."

Tatsu looked to see Sasuke sitting in the window sill holding the Make Out Tactics book "Oh good, that makes it easier."

"It's been on my mind so I decided to pop in when I overheard your voices. I think I caught most of it."

"Just one question, why do you have a copy of Make Out Tactics."

"Zaku."

"Ah. Anyway, that's the only book Jiraiya's published with the letter ta in the title."

"That's the one Pervy Sage was working the whole time during our training." Naruto realized.

"And again, something Jiraiya knew only Naruto would be able to figure out. Like I thought, that magnificent lecherous bastard passed the key to Naruto."

"I'll leave you to it then, later." and Sasuke left.

"Anyway, this ta is the first character in the code. When a character from a book is used in a code, it could signify word placement or line number, but the first point to investigate should be page number. Anyway, the numbers in this code are 31, 8, 106, 7, 207 and 15, which leaves us 6 potential pages worth of information. Let's start with page 31."

"Alright." Naruto flipped to page 31 "Here it is, now what do we do next?"

"Now we've gotta look at what the first letter or word on that page is, so read the first sentence out loud."

"...What?"

"Read it out loud."

"Uh…"

"Oh for the love of hell, you're hopeless. You're a perv and I've got way too much dignity to read that crap out loud. What we need here is a third party with no shame whatsoever."

Danzo suddenly found them both staring at him "Why are you staring at me?"

"You know why we're staring at you."

"...Give me the book."

45 excruciating minutes later…

"That's all of the pages." Danzo put the book down and sighed ' _No wonder Hiruzen was always so secretive about it.'_

Tatsu finished writing it down "There, now all 6 pages done."

"What does it say?" asked Naruto.

"If I read the first character from each page of the book in order, it should say _The real one's not among them._ That's what it says."

"And what the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"How should I know? Anyway we'd better relay this to Lord Fukasaku right away, he fought Pain with Jiraiya so he might know something."

"Then we should go have Tsunade summon Lord Fukasaku right away." Danzo told them.

"Good idea, and you'd better come too."

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Fukasaku stared long and hard at the deciphered code "The real one's not among them."

"Well Geezer Sage, what do you think?" asked Naruto "Does it make any sense to you?"

"I'm not sure, it's still all too unclear to me."

"But you have some hypotheses though don't you?" asked Dosu.

"I've already told you absolutely everything I know about Pain, he seems to be able to come back from the dead so I hesitate to give you air conjectures. Under these conditions it's still mighty dangerous to take him on, we must first uncover his secrets."

"How are the other investigations going?" asked Tatsu "The autopsy and the interrogation."

Ino sighed "It looks like they're both gonna take a little bit longer."

"Like how much longer?" asked Naruto.

"I can't really say, I don't think that they even know."

"Well while they're screwing around we're losing time!"

"Interrogation aside, an autopsy requires detailed cell and tissue analysis and enzyme extraction and it all has to be extremely detailed. Doing all of that takes time, it'll be a week at the soonest before we know anything for sure."

"Well then what should we do in the meantime?" asked Tatsu.

Tsunade sighed "Shizune and Kin are heading up the autopsy, so it should be quicker than usual but we'll still just have to wait."

"No, I'll go make them speed it up." Naruto started towards the door.

"Naruto this is a delicate process, you can't just barge in like that." Dosu protested.

"I will avenge Pervy Sage." Naruto gripped his fist to the point where it nearly bled "I can't just sit around here doing nothing."

"But listen Naruto-boy." Fukasaku spoke up "Now that we've deciphered the coded message there's nothing else going on that involves you right now."

"So what about it? What are you trying to say?"

"Even as you are now, no matter how many jutsu you know you're definitely nowhere near strong enough to defeat Pain yet."

"You wanna run that by me again?"

"You know I'm right, even Jiraiya-boy couldn't defeat him and if he couldn't then do you think you could?"

"Well… I guess not…"

"Forget it, if you were to fight him now then you'd just be playing into the Akatsuki's hands and get capture and have Kurama extracted." Tatsu pointed out.

"So what are you guys saying? I should just totally forget about avenging the Pervy Sage? That I should just sit around and do nothing?"

Fukasaku shook his head "We said no such thing. Being asked to come here was quite opportune, you see for a long time I've been planning on coming to speak with you Naruto-boy."

"About what?"

"Let me put it this way. Do you want to come with me and train in the art of Sage Jutsu under my guidance?"

"Train in Sage Jutsu?"

"So that's your angle." Tatsu paused, blue markings appearing around his eyes "Not a bad idea actually, and the timing couldn't be better for that."

"Wait, so is Sage Jutsu really that awesome?"

"You tell me." Tatsu appeared behind Naruto before he could even blink "I mastered it after the mission with the Rasenshuriken, at this point I could probably beat Tsunade in a one on one fight."

"Woah…"

"And for the record, very few have been able to master Sage Mode of any kind. Among them were the First Hokage, Jiraiya, the Fourth Hokage, and I'm pretty sure my brother could use it too. Anyway, Pain defeated Jiraiya after he'd summoned Lord Fukasaku and Lady Shima so at this point I'm probably the only person in the village who could defeat Pain, but even then I have my doubts."

"I'm as furious as you." Fukasaku admitted "I too want to avenge the death of my student Jiraiya-boy, I believe the only one who can truly do that is you Naruto-boy."

Naruto blinked "Me? Seriously?"

"You do want to avenge Jiraiya-boy don't you?"

"You better believe I do."

"Well then come with me now, I can teach you Sage Jutsu at Mount Myoboku. The same way I hammered it into Jiraiya-boy I'll hammer it into you, if that's okay."

"Will it help me win? Will I be able to defeat Pain?"

"Like with Tatsu-boy there's no guarantees, it all depends on you Naruto-boy." then Fukasaku turned to Tsunade "Are you alright with this?"

Tsunade nodded "Yes of course, Naruto go with him."

"I warn you though, Sage Jutsu training is unbelievable rigorous. Are you ready?"

"Well if Tatsu and Pervy Sage and all the others were able to master it then I'll give it my best shot too. Count me in."

' _An entrusted student, the Child of Prophecy._ Nicely said."

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Within half a day, the time had come for departure.

"We should be moseying along now." Fukasaku told the group "So Naruto-boy, say your goodbyes."

"Right." Naruto turned to the others "Alright, I'm off guys. Make sure you take care of that code for me."

"Don't worry about that." Tatsu waved him off "If we figure out anything else then we'll be sure to let you know."

"I will leave the messenger frog with you." Fukasaku told them "Send him to me if anything comes up."

"Will do." then he turned to Naruto "Alright man, don't come back without kicking some ass. And just to make sure, take this." he handed Naruto a scroll.

"What is it?"

"Some wind jutsu, be sure to master them."

"You got it, now let's go." he started walking, then stopped.

"You have no idea where you're going do you?"

"No I do not."

' _Yeah, we're doomed.'_

"I know what you're thinking, and fo f*ck yourself."

"It takes a month to get there on foot." Fukasaku told him "It's also known as Maze Mountain because if you don't know the secret route then you won't be able to get there."

"Oh come on, why does this place have to be so hard to reach?"

"Wait Naruto-boy, you already summoned a binding contract with the toads. There's no need to worry son." Fukasaku summoned the toad contract "Alright Tsunade-girl, I'll just be borrowing this boy then."

"Hold on, what do you mean there's no need to worry-" then Naruto disappeared.

"So you used a Reverse Summoning." Tatsu noted "Not bad."

"Good luck on your end of things as well." then Fukasaku disappeared.

"Alright, let's get back to work with figuring out the information Jiraiya left." then Tatsu noticed that Tsunade was staring off into space "I've got a pretty good idea of what you're thinking."

Tsunade just stared out into the distance "The fact that the Great Lord Elder prophesied Jiraiya writing those books may have been intended to enable him to eventually leave the encrypted message, meaning that the prophecy may be real. In which case…"

"Naruto truly is the Child of Prophecy."

"You've always been so sure of him, whenever he puts his mind to something you've never had any doubts that he'd be able to do it."

"Because I've always had faith in him, ever since the day we first met."

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At the same time, Tobi and the Akatsuki that the Eight-Tails jinchuuriki Killer Bee, who had been supposedly captured by the masked pink-haired Akatsuki, was actually a clone made from a fragment of the Eight-Tails, while Pain and Konan headed out for the Hidden Leaf to hunt down and capture Naruto.

 **A/N:**

 **This one was short, but that's mainly because of what's about to come in the near future.**

 **There's not much to be said this time, other than a heads up. Next chapter will be based on one of the Shippuden movies, and it will revolve around Tatsu and Sasuke.**

 **Just to be clear for future reference, I've decided that I won't give Danzo that right arm with all the Sharingan since I'm making him a semi-good guy. He'll have both normal arms and Shisui's Sharingan, that's it.**


	15. The Lost Tower, Reunion of Brothers

In the ruins of the city of Loran in the desert of the Land of Wind, a battle was raging.

With the Dragon Blade in hand, Tatsu was being pushed back by a large puppet, only to finish it with a Rasengan ' _Dammit, these things keep coming.'_

"Tatsu!" a voice called "They're rigged with paper bombs that will explode when you defeat them!"

"Now you tell me!" Tatsu promptly got blown back by the explosion, sending him tumbling back to where Sasuke, Kin and Zaku were rendezvousing.

"You've gotta pay attention." Sasuke pointed out "You can't let yourself get distracted by the puppets, just focus on the chakra threads being used to control the puppet."

"Yeah well excuse me for not being a puppet fighting genius smartass, and this is only because you fought Sasori."

"Well why didn't you just use your Chakra Blade?"

"Because I already have a sword, the Dragon Blade remember? Now where the hell did that puppet master jackass Mukade drag his skinny ass off to?"

"I'm guessing there." Sasuke pointed to a massive crater in the ground "Mukade is trying to get to the ley line underneath the ruins or Loran." he carried the group down on his summoning hawk Garuda.

' _The ley line, a gigantic mass of energy flowing underground with an almost infinite amount of chakra hidden in the earth.'_ Tatsu let out a sigh as he recalled the events that led them to come to the ruins of Loran ' _Tsunade and Danzo sent the four of us, me and Sasuke in particular, to the ruins of Loran in the desert of the Land of Wind.'_ they quickly made their way towards the main source of the ley line ' _As part of our pact with the Hidden Sand, we're supposed to capture or kill a rogue ninja, a puppet master by the name of Mukade._ So that's the main source. _Mukade is trying to get to the ley line that lies beneath Loran, the ley line is an immense source of chakra sealed away by a jutsu formula team of new ANBU, consisting of Kazuma, Itachi, Shisui and Ayame. We're supposed to guard that seal with our lives, and if we can't capture Mukade then we've been given permission to execute him._ So that's it, the seal placed there by my brother."

Sasuke let out a sigh "Tatsu, about your brother, I've gotta tell you something."

"It'll have to wait, the mission comes first." Tatsu looked ahead to see Mukade walking up to the seal "There's Mukade."

"Well it looks like you're too late to try to stop my plans." Mukade noted "I'll possess the power of the ley line and use it to fuel my Puppet Jutsu, and then I shall rule over not just the Five Great Nations but the entire universe."

"I highly doubt that, there's no way the seal placed by my brother, the Silver Claw of the Hidden Leaf."

"Oh yes, I am well aware of that." he knelt down in front of the seal and formed a hand seal.

"What are you planning to do?"

"I'll just absorb the sealing formula! **Hon Mayura Girante Sowaka!"** he began absorbing the formula.

"Dammit!" Tatsu drew the Dragon Blade and rushed out to stop him, with Sasuke and the rest following.

Mukade's body was covered in marks from the seal as he attempted to remove the sword placed in the seal.

"Stop, don't do it!"

Mukade ripped the kunai out, enveloping him and the seal in a purple light.

"Dammit!" Tatsu tried to escape, but found himself enveloped.

"Tatsu!" Sasuke summoned his Susanoo ribcage in an attempt to pull him out, but ended up being dragged in.

" **Water Style: Liquid Manipulation: Hawk!"** Zaku formed a hawk using his water style chakra so he and Kin wouldn't be pulled in "Tatsu! Sasuke!"

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"A light rises above the tower, bursting with emotion. The path of the dragon which must be protected looks to the sky, reflecting itself onto the blade…"

Tatsu came to and found himself in an unfamiliar building ' _What the hell? Where am I?'_ he looked to see an unfamiliar young woman singing nearby.

"Even if the sands and winds turn violent, the bright sun blooms proudly, and its flowers dance as they fall."

Cautiously, Tatsu approached her "Excuse me."

The woman looked startled.

"Where exactly am I?"

Instead of answering, the woman ran towards the exit.

"Hold on!" Tatsu ran after her, only to run head first into a barrier put over the exit by two puppets on the other side "Dammit, this always happens to me every single time."

The puppets charged, but once they passed through the barrier they broke apart.

"What the hell was that?" then he saw the passageway close and trap him in "Okay, that's a bad sign." so he went out by going up and breaking through a window, finding himself in an unfamiliar city ' _Well wherever I am, this place is magnificent. The designs on the buildings here are incredible.'_

Then several large puppets appeared before him.

"Of course." Tatsu drew the Dragon Blade as he began dodging attacks ' _They're trying to prevent me from forming any hand signs._ Dammit Mukade, where the hell are you? _What the hell is going on?'_ he ran along a passageway connecting to towers, only for another puppet to appear in front of him "You've gotta be kidding me, how many of these things are there?" he was forced on the evasive and leapt across the towers ' _This is getting annoying. Wait, what was it Sasuke said? Oh yeah, just cut the strings. Chakra Blades are for chumps!'_ he quickly formed a hand seal " **Dragon Style: Crescent Moon Dance!"** he cut through the strings of one puppet after another, only to be beaten down to the ground ' _This is going nowhere, there's too many for me to keep up with.'_

One of the puppets fired a chakra cannon at him, sending him through the floor.

"Okay, that one hurt." Tatsu found himself in some sort of underground chamber with a deep cut on his leg.

The puppets came back for more.

' _Dammit!'_

"Look out!" a masked figure appeared and quickly pulled Tatsu out of the way.

' _Who's this guy?'_

"Stay back!" another figure appeared and took out the remaining puppets with a colossal figure made of pure chakra.

' _Is that a green Susanoo?_ I've never seen puppets like those."

"Seems like they're powered by chakra from the ley line." the first masked figure noted.

"Hey thanks for the save, but who exactly are you?"

"Judging by that headband you're a Hidden Leaf shinobi right?"

"Yeah."

The figure removed his mask slightly "We're from the Hidden Leaf too, call me Dragon. That one down there is Hawk, and the other two behind him are Iris and Weasel. We really should tend to that wound of yours right away."

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A fat figure noticed that Tatsu and the other masked Hidden Leaf group had evaded his puppet unit, and found it quite impressive.

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Dragon tended to Tatsu's leg "There, that should do it."

"Thanks but you never answered my question, who are you guys?" asked Tatsu.

"Sorry, that's something I can't tell you."

"Then can you at least tell me where we are?

"This is Loran?"

"Hold on, that's impossible."

"We don't have time to go into all the details, but the short version is that we're here because we have a mission to complete. I'm going to have to ask you to leave the city until it's done, I can tell you more then." Dragon pointed "You'll find the main gate if you turn left there, do I have your promise?"

"But-"

Then they disappeared before he could answer.

"What the hell was that about? I can't leave either smartass, I have a mission to fulfill myself. Then there's the fact that I've gotta somehow meet up with Sasuke and the others, where are they anyway?" so Tatsu went into the open air and looked around "This place really is amazing, but is this really Loran?" then he saw the desert in the distance ' _Well it must be, Loran was surrounded by desert after all. There was that light when Mukade absorbed the seal and I got pulled into that light, and then Sasuke got pulled in too. Did Zaku and Kin get sucked into it?_ I can't stand around daydreaming, I've gotta go find the others." he was about to leave, but stopped when he saw fireworks and heard cheering.

"Your majesty!"

' _Your majesty? Who the hell are they talking about?'_ he made his way closer to the central tower to learn more.

Then the queen, the woman from before by the name of Sara appeared and started cordially waving to the people.

' _Hang on, isn't that the girl that I saw before? She's the queen? Maybe I should ask her, she might know something.'_

Then Sara felt something push her and she suddenly fell through the balcony.

' _Crap!'_ without having any time to think, Tatsu leapt out and caught Sara before she hit the ground, then carried her to a safe and hidden area in the shadows "That was close."

Sara opened her eyes and looked at Tatsu ' _What?'_

"It's alright, you're safe now."

"No no no!" Sara promptly began repeatedly slapping him across the face "Unhand me!"

"What are you-" then he got elbowed.

"You insolent-"

"What is the matter with you? In case you forgot, I just saved your life less than 5 minutes ago."

"What? Oh yes of course, how silly of me. Thank you."

Tatsu promptly rubbed his sore cheeks ' _What the hell is with this chick?'_

' _He's so uncouth.'_

"So you're the queen from what I gather."

"I am Sara the high queen or Loran if that's what you mean."

"Tatsu Kamikaze, jonin of the Hidden Leaf. So is there supposed to be more than one place called Loran? I was in a place called Loran about an hour ago, but it looked like it had been in ruins for years."

"How dare you say that to me!"

"I say it like it is."

"Loran is the city I inherited from my mother, it's more precious to me than life itself."

"Believe me, I get that but we've got other things to worry about right now. For starters, what happened to you up there."

"Oh, that. Well, it felt as if someone had pushed me from behind."

"Wait, you're saying that someone tried to kill you?"

"What? No, don't be absurd. Who would ever want to do something like that to me, the queen? You saw, my people were showering me with adoration."

"And yet you literally just said that someone pushed you."

"Yes well, I probably just imagined all of that."

"Maybe but-"

"You're still here." then Dragon appeared with his team "So you didn't keep your promise."

"What promise? You took off before I could answer. Besides what was I supposed to do, let the queen here go splat?"

"He's right." a new voice cut in "Letting innocents die is not the way of the Leaf shinobi."

Tatsu and the rest looked to see Sasuke drop down "Sasuke."

"I came too and started searching until I found you. Any luck on Zaku or Kin?"

"Nope, I think it's just us."

"Excuse me!" Sara got in between Tatsu and Sasuke, and the masked Leaf ninja "Just who are you people?"

"Like I told you, we're Hidden Leaf shinobi." then he turned to Dragon "Hold on, don't tell me you're here to assassinate her!"

Dragon held up a hand "Just relax and don't get the wrong idea, we're here to protect the queen too. Let's go talk somewhere more private."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Once they were safely inside another tower, Tatsu stared out at the retreating crowd "This whole thing is just insane. Puppet attacks out of nowhere, the ruins or Loran turning into this amazing city. I don't think I've ever been this confused before, if you guys know something then could you tell me what's going on before my brain melts through my nose?"

Dragon shared a look with Iris, Hawk and Weasel, recalling how they had all been sent by the Third Hokage to Loran on a mission "I guess it can't be helped, I hate to do this but I can't tell you everything, though I'll tell you both what you need to know." they all removed their masks and revealed their faces.

Tatsu froze, along with Sasuke ' _No way… Kazuma, Itachi, Shisui and Ayame?'_

"The Hidden Leaf Village sent us here on a top secret mission. You're right about one thing, this isn't the Loran that you know but if my guess about this is correct then you both came from Loran in the future."

"...The future?"

"That's right, I didn't want to tell you everything because if someone from the future alters something in this era then the events of history could be drastically changed. My best guess is that this is roughly 10 years before the era you two came from, and another shinobi from the future came here about 6 years ago. Like you both, he suddenly found himself here, his name his Mukade."

"That's the guy our team was sent after."

"We'll start from there, we may be able to learn something."

"Alright, let's see here." Sasuke finally spoke up "The four of us, we all followed Mukade to the sealed ley line. Before we could stop him he absorbed the jutsu formula into his body, and then…"

"The two of you along with Mukade must have been sent back in time through some variant of the Transportation Technique."

"But does that mean we can never go back to our time?" asked Tatsu.

"You said he absorbed a jutsu formula into his body right? Maybe if you defeat Mukade then time will correct itself and you'll return to the future."

"You think so?"

"I'm not entirely sure, but either way we have to bring Mukade down or all of time will be disrupted. The power of the ley line is deep underground, Mukade is using that power to develop an army of dangerous puppet soldiers."

"Yeah, he said something like that before he tried to absorb its power, along with ruling the Five Great Nations and the entire universe-"

"Enough!" Sara finally had it "I demand you stop speaking such lies! It wasn't some evil shinobi named Mukade who appeared in the city 6 years ago, it was a good man named Anrokuzan! Today Anrokuzan serves as my minister and has faithfully carried out the wishes of my mother, he loves peace and would never develop any military weapons and I won't stand you speaking ill of him!"

"I beg your pardon your majesty, I have no intention of upsetting you." Kazuma told her "But I'm afraid this man has been deceiving you."

"I refuse to believe such tales!" she pointed at Tatsu "If anyone is suspicious here then it should be you!" and she started walking away.

"Where are you going?" asked Tatsu.

"I'm going to go ask him about this myself!" and she ran off.

"You almost got killed less than an hour ago, what if Anrokuzan- Mukade was behind it?"

"I think we should split up." Kazuma suggested "Tatsu and Sasuke was it? I want you two to keep an eye on Queen Sara and keep her safe."

"Look I don't have anything against guarding her but our real mission is to take down Mukade. This entire mess started because we let him get away in the first place."

"It will be faster if my team looks for him, unlike you we're familiar with this city. Besides, we can't include you in a mission that's already in progress. You're both Hidden Leaf shinobi, you should know that. Plus protecting Sara is just as important."

"Yeah I get your point, Sara's life is on the line and we can't forget about her."

"Exactly, spoken like a true Leaf ninja." Kazuma held out a kunai "Here?"

"What the hell is this?"

"One of the Flying Raijin kunai used by the Fourth Hokage, he taught me that jutsu because he thought I could master it. Then there's these three jonin who could use it, but they need three people for it. Anyway, you hang on to it for now and if you're ever in need then I'll be by your side in an instant."

' _This is the kunai used in the sealing formula… No question about it, it really is him._ Hey listen, you wouldn't happen to be-"

"Save pleasantries for later, you two better hurry up and get going. Don't forget, we're literally working against time."

"Oh yeah, right."

"And make sure you both take good care of Sara."

"Yeah, will do. Sasuke, let's go." and he took off.

Sasuke followed him "Hey Tatsu."

"Yeah, no doubt about it… that was my older brother and your older brother…"

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Still in denial, Sara made her way up through an elevator ' _They know nothing about Anrokuzan, nothing at all! How could Tatsu and those others make such accusations?'_ she reached a level and stepped out of the elevator ' _I will prove that Anrokuzan is innocent of these charges.'_

"There!" an arm suddenly grabbed Sara and pulled her into another room.

Sara found herself faced to face with several masked figures ' _These people… so it's true… there are people who wish to see me dead…'_

One of them stepped forward "Is it you? Are you really Queen Sara?"

"Yes and I won't be treated this way, if you wish to kill me then have the courage to stop hiding in the shadows and do it!" the response she got was the figures holding up their weapons.

"Return them."

"What? Return what?"

"If you don't then who knows what will happen to you." the figure was backed up by the others chanting for Sara to return them "We mean it."

"Well I know exactly what will happen to you!" the door was suddenly cut down, revealing Tatsu and Sasuke on the other side, swords drawn "Get the hell away from her."

One of the masked figures immediately started freaking out "Please don't kill me, I don't want to die!" she and the rest removed their hoods and masks.

"Okay this is getting ridiculous, Sasuke flip a switch."

"Flipping the switch." then Sasuke flipped the switch and turned on the lights.

"Alright, who the hell are you people?"

One of them stepped forward "My name is Sarai, and I'm not a bad guy I swear."

The leader, a young woman, stepped forward "And my name is Masako, I'm sorry, please forgive us."

"We just wanted Queen Sara to hear our plea and we couldn't get to talk to her otherwise?"

Sara awkwardly stepped forward "Alright, but just what is it that you want me to return?"

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Masako and the group then led Sara, Tatsu and Sasuke through an underground passage into the city, behind where the festivities were taking place "Here."

Sara actually enjoyed the sight "How beautiful, it's so wonderful to see the parade from down here isn't it?"

Tatsu shared a look with Sasuke and let out a sigh "I think you're missing the point."

"A while ago Anrokuzan started this parade in my honor, I was still grieving over the sudden loss of my mother so he and my people tried to cheer me up."

"You know that's kind of funny." Sadai commented, sounding somewhat bitter.

"And what is so funny about it?"

"That all of your people actually just make fun of you and call you the Puppet Princess."

"What? Why would they call me that?"

"Quiet, not another word." Masako hissed "Please try to forgive Sadai your majesty, but still I don't blame her for speaking what's on her mind. All of us have had close family members suddenly taken away from us and all because of the orders you gave."

"What?"

"Is that true?" asked Sasuke.

"No, it's a lie! I have never given such an order!"

"Masako isn't lying to you." Sadai told her "I know it's happening because my own dad and brother were taken away."

"What?"

"It's rumored that somewhere in our land, captured people are being used to manufacture weapons." Masako told her "So we had no choice but to make a direct appeal to you."

"Kazuma said the same thing." Tatsu pointed out.

"So? It's still a lie!" Sara protested "If what they were saying was true then why would all of my people be so happy and continue to cheer me on the way they do?"

"But Queen Sara, no one in this city is really happy." Sadai told her.

"What are you talking about? Just look, there are happy citizens all around you!"

Sasuke activated his Sharingan "Looks to me like you're not seeing what's really there." he threw his Chakra Blade and caught it as it boomeranged back to him, and rushed over to check it out, then brought one of the _citizens_ over to Sara "It's just a puppet, see for yourself."

"What?"

"All of those people, every single one of them is a puppet. Just watch here for a minute and I'll show you." he channeled some chakra into the puppet, rekindling the chakra thread and reconnecting it to a large pipe overhead, as well as revealing several others "You see the chakra threads coming out of that big pipe up there?"

"Energy from the ley line flows through that pipe to provide power to the whole city."

' _And that pipe must also be delivering chakra.'_ Tatsu realized ' _It's powering all of the puppets we've seen so far.'_ then he heard the trumpets sounding, and he and the rest looked to see a puppet Sara on the balcony above.

"What is that? What is going on here?"

"Just what it looks like, Mukade has turned you into a puppet too."

"No way, I won't believe that! Anrokuzan would never do such a thing!" and she ran off into the crowd.

' _Son of a bitch!_ Sasuke, let's go! Sara wait, where are you going?" Tatsu ran after her, with Sasuke following him, only to lose her in the crowd "Sara!"

"Come on!" Sasuke used his Susanoo to clear out a large number of puppets and used the skeletal arm to grab Tatsu and bring him to a more open area alongside the parade "Okay mission leader, what's the plan from here?"

"Well for starters you shouldn't spam your Mangekyo Sharingan and Susanoo like that? I mean you're not as good as Itachi was when it comes to conserving-" he paused and shoved his hand over Sasuke's mouth when he heard something.

It was a soft feminine voice singing "Bursting with emotion…"

Tatsu held out a hand, motioning for Sasuke to stay put, and made his way alone down to where he heard it.

"The path of the dragon, which must be protected-"

"You were singing that song the first time I saw you too." Tatsu came down and found Sara singing by herself.

"...I remember how my mother used to sit there and sing it to me all the time, it was Anrokuzan who convinced my mother to use the power of the ley line for the good of all of our people. Through my mother's ability to control the ley line and Anrokuzan's engineering skills, Loran was transformed into a city of a thousand towers in practically no time at all. But then my mother died before all of our hopes and dreams for our city could be realized, when my mother died I had no one left in my life aside from Anrokuzan. I truly had nobody at all…"

"...I never met my parents either, they died during an attack on my village when I was too little to remember them. For as long as I could remember it was just me and my older brother, but then he was killed and I was left with my master, Hayate Gekko, the closest thing to a real father figure I've ever had. He's gone now too, but he still left me something very precious. He left me his iron will of never giving up, protecting something precious with every ounce of your strength, and the lesson to live life to the fullest so when you die you don't have any regrets. But above all, he taught me to never give up on something when you decide to do it. I know for a fact that your mother left you something precious too."

"Yes, she did."

"Well then you have to think as hard as you can about what your mother left you and figure what you have to do now, I'm sure you'll find the answer. Look inside yourself, do what you have to do, and above all, never give up even if it kills you."

Sara paused, then stood, a determined glint in her eyes "Here it is, I have to find out the truth about what's going on in Loran. As queen I'm able to sense the power of the ley line, if I follow the flow of the ley line in that pipe then maybe we'll learn something."

"Alright then, let's do it. Hey Sasuke, it's clear now."

Then Sasuke came down, Mangekyo Sandagan (Sanda Sharingan combined with the Mangekyo Sharingan) flaring "Do we have a plan?"

"Yep, let's go find Mukade and kick his ass."

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Sara led Tatsu, Sasuke, Masako and Sadai to an exhaust vent "This exhaust vent leads all the way down to the central core that contains the ley line itself."

"Right." Tatsu turned to Sasuke and the others "Sasuke, stay with these two in case Mukade tries anything on your end. And don't worry about your families, if we find them then we'll be sure to rescue them but for now just stay here with Sasuke and the others."

"You'll help us?" asked Sadai, sounding hopeful.

"I give you my word as queen that we'll rescue all of them."

"Don't forget." and they left with Sasuke.

"I won't just leave it to us." Tatsu opened up a shaft "Now let's go, but be sure to let me go ahead at all times." and he went down first.

"Right." Sara quickly followed him.

The infiltration and rescue mission had begun.

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Once inside, Tatsu carved open a ceiling tile that led them into the core, and quickly caught Sara as she fell "Alright let's go, but remember to keep your voice down." he looked to see the men of the city being forced to work as slaves.

Sara was horrified by what she saw "What is this?"

"Looks like they're being forced to create more of those puppet soldiers that attacked me and the others earlier."

"I just can't believe it, Anrokuzan is really using my people to create weapons?"

"So what are you going to do now?"

"What I have to do, I'm going to stop him." Sara looked around and noticed something "I need you to get me down there and quickly, please Tatsu. I can cut off the power from the ley line there."

"Alright." Tatsu took Sara into his arms "Let's go, but be sure to hang on tight." he took her to the ground and hid with her, cautiously making their way to that certain point.

"I'll need you to stay here alright?"

"I'll make sure none of the puppets get through, just do what has to be done."

"Right." Sara made her way down to where the sealing formula would be placed and formed a hand seal "I the queen of Loran command you, ley line let thy flow now cease and quell the power that's within thee." a purple barrier appeared around the center of it " **Kyu Kyu Nyo Ritsu Ryo."** she lowered the purple barrier, and the sealing formula around it disappeared, causing the machines to shut down.

Tatsu rushed over "You alright?"

"Yes, it's all shut down now. The energy from the ley line flowing into the factory has ceased completely."

"Way to go. Alright, now's our chance." then he saw purple chakra threads flowing throughout the area putting multiple puppets together.

"Your majesty this is quite a surprise, what are you doing here?"

Sara looked to see a fat bearded figure standing above them "It's Anrokuzan!"

Tatsu nearly gagged "That's Anrokuzan? _Damn, he really let himself go.'_

"Indeed." Anrokuzan bowed.

"I stopped the flow of the ley line, I will not allow its power to be used for warfare." Sara told him firmly "As your queen, I order to stop production of these puppet soldiers and to release all of these unfortunate citizens that you've captured and forced into labor."

"I see, so you know that much about what I've been doing. Well if that's the case Sara then I cannot allow you to live, a puppet will be a suitable enough replacement for you. Besides, my puppet army is already complete and I no longer have a need for the power of the ley line that you have cut off." he sen three puppet soldiers forward.

Tatsu stepped forward "Sara listen to me, I want you to take everyone and get them out of here right now."

"What about you?" asked Sara.

"The mission is either to kill or capture him, I'm really hoping it's the former, now hurry up and go!"

"Okay, just be careful." and Sara took off.

Tatsu looked up to Anrokuzan "Tell me something, is that really you underneath all that fat and beard Mukade? You sure let yourself go."

Anrokuzan smirked bitterly "Leave it to a Hidden Leaf shinobi to full the queen's head with noble nonsense, it's been 6 years since I've seen you hasn't it?"

"Well for me it's been less than a day, I don't know how the hell you look my ugly uncle steve but as long as you admit that you're Mukade I'm not letting you get out of this alive."

"Mukade you say? I put the name of that hoodlum behind me long ago, I am now Lord Minister Anrokuzan of Loran and I control this city!" he sent the puppets to attack.

"Minister my ass!" Tatsu promptly stomped down on both puppets with one swift kick to the head for each of them.

"Oh my, fine then!" Anrokuzan sent five more to attack Sara "I told you my puppet army was complete and now I'll test it on you!"

Tatsu appeared between Sara and the puppets "I'm gonna fight these guys off and open up a path, when I do I want you to make a run for it." he formed a Rasengan in the palm of his left hand and shredded the puppets "Now go, hurry!"

"Right!" Sara ran through the carnage.

"Come on fatass, is that all you've got?"

"Very well then." Anrokuzan sent several more puppets forward.

Using the Dragon Blade, Tatsu kept cutting the strings of the puppets, only to found himself bound when they combined into one gigantic puppet prison.

"You can't escape from that, can't muster up any strength can you? That's because the puppet that now surrounds you is siphoning off your chakra."

"Please stop this Anrokuzan!" Sara demanded.

"You know I have to say I really should thank you Queen Sara, you took your late mother's place and in your role as queen you were able to help me bring this grand scheme of mine to fruition. But I'm afraid that now you are no longer useful to me, so the time has come for me to die just as your mother did."

Sara froze at that "Don't tell me… you're the one who killed my mother!"

"Did you just now realize the truth Sara? Well your mother was a much shrewder queen than you, she saw through me right from the start and completely refused to cooperate with my plan. I couldn't have asked for a more ideal puppet than you Sara, a puppet virtually asking to be controlled by me. However, it's time for me to make the final switch and rule this city myself."

Sara could only look on in horror, tears brimming in your eyes."

"MUKADE!" Tatsu roared "I'm your enemy hear, forget about her! Sara, snap out of it already!"

Sara promptly fell to her knees in tears.

"Listen to me Sara, you are not a puppet and you never have been! Are you listening to me Sara?"

"Enough of this farce." Anrokuzan manipulated a blade from one of his puppets and aimed it at Sara, intent on finishing her.

"Don't you dare!" white chakra burst from Tatsu's body and appeared in front of Sara, acting as a shield.

"What?" Anrokuzan looked at the unfamiliar chakra being release "What's going on? That chakra is immense, I've never seen anything like it."

"You're the queen Sara, don't you dare cry! Pick yourself up, you have to what you have to do! I'll take care of this sack of scum so don't worry about that!"

Anrokuzan promptly covered Tatsu's face on the puppet "That's enough out of you. What could you do to me now anyway? You can't even move your arms or legs." then he backed away when he saw blue energy building up.

"WANNA BET YOU SON OF A BITCH?!" with a furious roar, Tatsu burst out of the puppet's chest, blue markings around his eyes ' _I love Sage Mode._ THAT'S ENOUGH OUT OF YOU YOU BASTARD!" he burst forward and slammed his fist against Anrokuzan's face.

However, Anrokuzan's face cracked instead of bleeding, only to quickly regenerate "While I'm in Loran, my power is infinite!" he stood and manipulated several more puppets, then revealed his true form: a massive ugly spider puppet " **Behold my ultimate body, brimming with infinite endless power!"**

' _What the hell is with that thing? Actually now that I think about it, Sasuke said that Akatsuki guy Sasori did the same thing to his own body but-'_

" **You and Sara will both die here!"** Anrokuzan summoned two blades and began slashing at Tatsu endlessly.

Thanks to Sage Mode enhancing his reflexes, Tatsu dodged the attacks with ease and quickly pulled Sara out of the way of a drill attack.

" **It's useless, there's nowhere for you to run!"** Anrokuzan advanced forward, along with several other puppets.

' _Son of a bitch!'_

" **Uchiha Style: Halo Dance!"** several waves of flames appeared and incinerated the smaller puppets, courtesy of Shisui as he dropped down.

' _Woah, awesome. I'd heard Shisui was good, but to take them out with one shot each is just insane.'_

Then Kazuma dropped down in front of Shisui, with Itachi and Ayame right behind him, then looked back to Tatsu and grinned "Hey there, are you alright?"

Anrokuzan noticed some explosions " **What?!"**

"Looks like that part of the plan worked out. Nice work Itachi."

"Just following orders. But yeah, that was awesome." for once Itachi lost his composure and gave a huge shit eating grin.

"Leave it to you." then he turned to Tatsu "First of all, Sage Mode, nice. Second, hurry up and get Queen Sara out of here now while you can."

"Right." Tatsu motioned to Sara "Alright Sara, no time to stand there gawking. Hurry up and free the captives, then get them out of here."

"Yes, right!" Sara quickly rushed off.

"Don't worry, I'll create a path!" Tatsu quickly formed a Rasengan in his palm, gathering nature energy and transferring it into the attack through his Sage Mode.

" **Damn you Sara, you won't escape!"** Anrokuzan lunged at her.

"Wanna bet?! **Sage Art: Rasengan!"** Tatsu slammed the nature-infused Rasengan down on Anrokuzan, hitting him directly in the face and sending him slamming into a wall.

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Sara was quick to free the prisoners and persuade them to follow her to escape.

Despite some hesitance, they all followed her.

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Tatsu readily got into a stance in front of Anrokuzan ' _It's not over, there's no way in hell it could be that easy._ You know what I'm thinking don't you?"

Kazuma nodded "Be sure not to let your guard down just yet, we can't be sure exactly what this guy is capable of."

"Right, it's never that easy."

Then Anrokuzan promptly collapsed to the ground " **Don't think I'm done with you yet."** he manipulated the parts of the other puppets and merged them with his own body, instantly repairing it " **Didn't I tell you that my power here is infinite?"**

"Okay, this is getting annoying. **Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** Tatsu summoned dozens of clones and charged in, stabbing at Anrokuzan with the Dragon Blade.

Anrokuzan promptly shook all of them off.

' _Dammit!'_

"Shisui, go!" Kazuma ordered.

"On it!" his Mangekyo flaring, Shisui activated his Susanoo ribcage, the skeletal chakra arm slamming Anrokuzan into the wall, then activated the full Susanoo and began ripping him to pieces, before sending him through the floor.

Tatsu looked down the hole "Damn, I heart Shisui was really good but that was just completely unreal."

Then chakra threads began absorbing more parts from various puppets, and within the hole Anrokuzan promptly reconstructed himself, much larger and much more powerful that he had been before " **Witness my ultimate power, boundless, merciless, and thirsty for your blood! My puppet army! This is now my new flesh and bone!"** with massive billows of steam, Anrokuzan rose once more.

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Sara brought everyone above ground and reunited them with their families, only to notice a horrible shaking and rumbling "Everyone we have to get out of here immediately, it's far too dangerous!"

"Get them out of here as fast as you can, I'll hold him off!" Sasuke charged in, Mangekyo Sandagan flaring into life.

"But-"

Tatsu was suddenly pulled up to the surface, hanging onto Anrokuzan for dear life "Nice try sucker, you're not shaking me off this easily!"

"Tatsu!"

"Sara just hurry and get everybody out of here, Sasuke and I will take care of this creep one way or another!"

"But-"

"You've gotta make sure your people are safe, you're the queen aren't you?!"

"...Understood." then she looked up at the central tower and an idea hit her ' _That's it!_ Everyone please follow me, we're gonna run to the central square!" she got several untrusting murmurs in response "Please trust me, I have an idea."

Masako was the first one to speak up "After what she did, we should all have faith in her majesty." she got some hesitant voices of agreement.

"This way!" Sara led them onwards.

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Tatsu motioned for Sasuke to stay behind him "Forget it Anrokuzan, we're the ones you have to worry about right now!"

" **Don't get in my way Leaf brats!"** Anrokuzan smashed down on the towers.

Tatsu leapt out of the way, only for his Sage Mode to face ' _Dammit, looks like 5 minutes is still my limit._ Sasuke, my Sage Mode just ran out!"

"I'll stall for time!" Sasuke activated his Susanoo, a humanoid lightning form visible within the armor thanks to the influence of his Raijin power.

" **One leaf brat or another, you will die here!"** Anrokuzan promptly punched the Susanoo, sending it stumbling back.

"I don't get it." Tatsu formed a Shadow Clone to gather Sage Mode "Why is he so determined to get Sara when Sasuke and I are right in front of him?"

Then Kazuma appeared in front of him "You're right, there must be a specific reason why he's so focused on her. Tatsu, I'll need you and Sasuke to protect Sara for a little while longer. There's something my team and I have to do."

"...You got it."

"Alright then, I'm counting on you."

"I won't let you down."

"I'm on it."

"Be careful." Kazuma then blitzed away.

' _I keep automatically doing everything he asks. No doubt about it, that's definitely my big brother._ No time to stand here day dreaming. Hey Sasuke, you alright?"

"Fine." Sasuke appeared before him, clutching his eye "I think I'm reaching the limit on my Mangekyo though." his eyes returned to normal Sharingan.

"Take a breather, I've got it from here." Tatsu dispersed his Shadow Clone, and blue markings appeared around his eyes "Just stand back and enjoy the show."

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Sara had finally led everyone into the central square "We've come far enough, the towers will serve as a barrier and that monster won't be able to get near us." she was proven wrong by shaking and rumbling "Oh no, it can't be!

Then Anrokuzan appeared " **Sara… Sara…"** he shot out several chakra threads.

"Everyone get back!" Sara sent everyone back, only to be bound herself like a puppet.

Anrokuzan flexed his finger, forcing Sara to choke herself.

' _No!'_

"Queen Sara!" Sadai rushed over in an attempt to free Sara "It won't budge! You guys go!"

Sara was forced to punch Sadai away.

" **Sara…"** Anrokuzan growled " **You are nothing but a foolish weak puppet princess, you have long outlived your usefulness now just stay still and die!"**

' _No…'_

" **Dragon Style: Crescent Moon Dance!"** Tatsu appeared, Dragon Blade drawn, and cut the chakra threads, then caught Sara as she collapsed "It's alright, I've got you."

Sara let out a cough and looked up at him "Tatsu…"

"Let me make this perfectly clear Sara, you are not just a puppet princess, you never have been and you never will be." he drew his Hidden Leaf Chakra Blade and held it out to her "Take this, now you go do what you think you have to do." and he took off.

Sara stared intently at her Chakra Blade ' _I know what I have to do.'_

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" **Die!"** Anrokuzan fired several blasts of chakra.

"Not today!" Tatsu charged up the wall of a tower, a Sage Art: Rasengan, and charged forward with it.

Anrokuzan slammed him to the ground.

' _Dammit!'_ now forced on the evasive, Tatsu began bouncing off of one wall after another while avoiding Anrokuzan's attacks.

" **Susanoo: Tsukumo!"** a barrage of green troubles collapsed a platform, causing it to fall on top of Anrokuzan.

' _There's the green Susanoo again.'_

Then Kazuma dropped down with Itachi and Shisui "Sorry we're late."

"Don't worry about it. Hold on, where's Ayame- the girl in your group?"

"She's supporting your friend, he used his Mangekyo Sharingan too much and now his eyes are just pouring blood."

"Oh. Well anyway, now that you guys are here things can get interesting."

"Tatsu!" Sara suddenly caught his attention from the central square, then suddenly stabbed herself in the chest.

"What the f*ck woman?!" Tatsu rushed over to the central square with the others.

Sara then cut her robes off and tied her hair in a ponytail "I know I can protect all of my people if I stop the ley line at its source."

"Of course, that's the reason why Anrokuzan is so desperate and wants to stop you so badly."

"You know that garden where I first saw you? The power of the ley line can't reach there so Anrokuzan won't be able to get too close."

"That'll work, nice one."

"Alright." Sara turned to her people "Please listen, I know of a safe place away from the power of the ley line. Let's hurry and head there right now, if we can reach it then I know that monster won't be able to get us."

Sadai was the first one to speak "Let's go!" she got voices of agreement and cheers.

"Thank you."

" **Sara!"** Anrokuzan thundered " **I cannot allow you to live any longer!"**

Tatsu got into a stance, his Sage Mode burning brightly "Hurry and go Sara, find the courage to do what has to be done."

"I will! Come on everyone, hurry!" Sara led everyone away.

"Forget it Anrokuzan, there's no way in hell you'll get past me!"

"No." Shisui stepped forward, activating his own Mangekyo Sandagan as he drew his own Raijin sword "This is a job for our team to do. You guard Sara, if we split up and divide our duties then it will save time."

"Come on, you've gotta be kidding me!"

"Sorry Tatsu, but they're right." Kazuma told him "This guy is incredibly powerful, he have to put up as many lines of defence as possible."

"Yeah I know, but…"

"You need to learn to have faith in others." Itachi advised "Now go, we'll hold him off."

"...Good luck you three, I'm counting on you!" Tatsu ran off.

" **Sara!"** Anrokuzan got up once more " **I will not allow you to get to that ley line!"** he lunged forward.

"You don't get to say that unless you're able to defeat me." Shisui activated his Raijin-enhanced Susanoo "Itachi, stay back." he quickly hit Anrokuzan with a barrage of Susanoo: Tsukumo needles "It's over for you now freak, these needles are able to block off the flow of chakra as long as they're embedded in your body." he promptly grabbed Anrokuzan with his Susanoo and threw him through a wall "There we go."

Then Anrokuzan was suddenly struck by purple lightning.

"He's absorbing more chakra, even my Tsukumo can't stop all of it!"

Anrokuzan, now powered up, easily removed the Tsukumo needles from his body " **This is nothing, I have more chakra than you could ever imagine!"**

"It doesn't matter how much chakra you've amassed, you're still nothing more than a mere puppet. Your power has a limit, and I'm going to find it."

Itachi looked up at the central tower supplying Anrokuzan with power "You're wrong Shisui, his power _is_ infinite. Looks like those towers are transmitting chakra that's been transformed into plasma."

"Oh. Well that's bad."

"Very."

"Is this going to hurt?"

"Probably."

" **Puppet Rotation!"** Anrokuzan sent out several blasts of wind.

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As they guided Sara and the others to safety, one of Shisui's Tsukumo needles stuck the ground in front of Tatsu and Kazuma, having a small scroll attached to it.

Kazuma checked it out and frowned "I thought as much."

"What's wrong?" asked Tatsu.

"It's Mukade, he's absorbing the power of the ley line and unless the two of us are able to seal it off he'll have an infinite amount of chakra at his disposal."

"Okay, that's bad."

"But even if he does have that much chakra there's always a weakness somewhere." then they looked up at the falling rubble to see Anrokuzan climbing down.

"Crap." Tatsu looked down to Sara and the rest "Sara hurry and get everyone else out of here as fast as you can!"

"Right, come on everyone!" Sara continued.

"We've gotta hold this guy off until Sara gets everyone to safety." the blue markings reappeared around Tatsu's eyes, a spiralling ball of chakra forming in his palm.

Kazuma's eyes nearly bulged out of his head ' _That's…'_

" **Rasengan!"** Tatsu charged in and thrusted the Rasengan forward.

" **Pathetic!"** Anrokuzan swatted him aside.

' _Ow…'_

Kazuma pulled Tatsu out of the way before he could be stabbed to death "I'll take over from here, you have to keep Sara safe."

"Forget it-"

"You know fully well that you can't fight him head on, and I have a possible way to uncover what his weakness might be, so please don't argue and just go."

"...Alright, just be careful." Tatsu then bolted off, his Sage Mode enhancing his speed.

' _Now to fire things up.'_ Kazuma charged towards Anrokuzan, Tenseigan flaring into life as he drew a Flying Raijin kunai " **Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** the kunai multiplied several times over and hit Anrokuzan with a rapid barrage, revealing the original body ' _There, that must be his weak spot.'_

Anrokuzan was struck by the chakra lightning, regenerating all damage done to him in a matter of seconds " **Pitiful."**

' _The speed of his regeneration is incredible!'_

" **Die!"** Anrokuzan lunged.

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Sara led the people to the bottom of the central tower "There's an inner garden through those doors behind me, the power of the ley line can't get inside there!"

Tatsu looked up "He's almost here Sara, if you're gonna do this then it's gotta be now!"

"Right!" Sara charged up to the door and tried to open, but it wouldn't budge "No, it's-!"

"What is it?" asked Masako.

"The impact of the towers falling must have jammed the lock, it won't open!"

"What?"

Sara kept trying and struggling.

"Keep going Sara, I'll buy you the time you need!" Tatsu leapt up along the wall of the tower and charged at Anrokuzan, a Rasengan forming in his palm.

" **Pitiful!"** Anrokuzan fired several chakra missiles.

Tatsu rubbed his head as he leapt out of the way, then wiped the blood from his lip and formed a hand seal " **Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** he summoned several clones that all charged.

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Sara saw the people struggling after the rubble fell, but inspired by Tatsu's courage to keep on fighting, her determination was renewed and she kept pounding on the door until a purple energy began flowing into the Chakra Blade and she placed it in the slot and began pushing. Once everyone else began backing her up, the door finally opened.

Everyone happily rushed in, but Sara stayed outside, claiming that there was still something that she had left to do.

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Anrokuzan thrashed Tatsu around and eventually slammed him into the ground " **Pathetic!"**

"You think so huh?" Tatsu stood once more, now lacking the blue markings around his eyes.

"Tatsu!" Sara rushed to his side.

"Not gonna lie Sara, this is a tough one. What about the others?"

"Don't worry, everyone made it into the inner garden safely."

"Good."

" **I've found you Sara!"** Anrokuzan thundered.

"Oh right, this guy."

"Just as I thought." Sara muttered "While the source of the ley line remains open Anrokuzan will have unlimited power, no matter what I'm going to have to go shut it down."

"Yeah, it's up to you now. I'll hold him off, so go do what has to be done."

"Right." Sara ran off.

Tatsu's eyes regained the blue markings "And I'll make sure this bastard doesn't try and follow you! **Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** he summoned a barrage of clones, one for each leg.

" **YOU SNEAKY LITTLE BRAT!"** Anrokuzan generated lightning, dissipating every clone, and attempted to flatten him with his tail.

Tatsu summoned another barrage of clones, some of them dissipating instantly "No way… I'm not done yet…"

" **Ley Line: Great Dragon Fire!"** Anrokuzan breathed out a massive blast of purple flames, dissipating every clone.

Tatsu sat up, panting heavily, his markings fading ' _Dammit… he's just so powerful that I can't keep up even in Sage Mode… But even so, there's absolutely no way in hell I'm going to let him get past me!'_ this time he summoned two clones, one for a certain jutsu and the other to gather nature energy.

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Sara shut the doors behind her and looked at the source of the ley line ' _I'll stop the source of the ley line's power!'_

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Tatsu dissipated his Shadow Clones, a spiralling shuriken in his hand and blue markings around his eyes ' _Every last bit of my chakra is packed into this thing.'_

" **DIE!"** Anrokuzan lunged.

" **Sage Art: Wind Style: Rasenshuriken!"** Tatsu fired off a sage-powered Rasenshuriken.

Anrokuzan absorbed the attack, then unleashed a mouth blast at point-blank range, sending him crashing through the doors.

' _Ow…'_

Sara looked back from where she was running "Tatsu!"

"I'll be fine, just keep going!"

" **What's the matter Leaf brat?!"** Anrokuzan burst through the destroyed door.

' _Dammit… that last Rasenshuriken used up the last of my chakra. I've only got Sage Mode left, but that won't last much longer either.'_

" **Are you finished already? DIE!"** Anrokuzan lunged forward.

' _Crap.'_

Kazuma suddenly blitzed in and got Tatsu out of the way of the attack using his Flying Raijin kunai "Are you alright?"

"Not really."

"Okay, I'll strike at his plan and when I do I want you to hurl that Sage Art: Rasengan straight at that point."

"No can do, I've used up just about all the chakra I've got and my Sage Mode just ran out a second ago. We don't have enough time for me to build it up again."

"Fine, then I'll give you some of my strength."

"That's not gonna work, the Rasengan is a jutsu that only the Fourth Hokage and Jiraiya know how to use."

"You forgot to add me into that little fact of yours, I know the Rasengan too. Don't forget, I know that you're from the future." blue markings appeared around his eyes "Come on, just hold out your left hand."

"Alright." Tatsu held his hand.

Kazuma placed his hands over it, forming a Rasengan with his own Sage Mode chakra.

' _Woah…'_

"So you still have some chakra left do you?" Anrokuzan thundered.

' _Nope, this is all him.'_

"Here." Kazuma formed a Rasengan in his own left hand.

"That's a Rasengan… _So it's really him…'_

"Here's a little fun fact, when similar chakra signatures merge together they synergize and strengthen each other, and when that happens the end result is an even more powerful Rasengan. Lord Fourth would probably call it an Ultimate Supreme Rasengan, but I've got a better name for it. Sage Art:-"

"Hyper Typhoon Rasengan?"

"You have good taste in names." he forced his Rasengan into Tatsu's, creating a tornado surrounding them.

"What the hell?"

"This is it. You take it, it's only right that you're the one to finish this."

" **Whatever that jutsu is, I'll still send you to hell and Sara is next!"** Anrokuzan absorbed more power " **Now I shall reveal to you my most powerful jutsu! Ley Line: Ultimate Dragon Fire Jutsu!"** he fired a massive blast of purple fire, but when the smoke cleared they were nowhere in sight " **What?!"**

"I'll get his attention!" Kazuma charged in " **Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** he fired off a barrage of Flying Raijin kunai, penetrating Anrokuzan's body and revealing his weak spot.

Sara finished sealing off the power of the ley line "It's done!"

"Right!"

" **Regeneration Jutsu!"** Anrokuzan tired to regenerate, but failed.

"Tatsu, his weak spot is right up there!"

" **What have you done Sara?!"**

"I'm trusting you right now, finish this madness and bring Loran to peace!"

"Right, you've got it!" Tatsu charged in.

" **No, I won't let you!"** Anrokuzan fired off one final Great Dragon Fire blast.

" **Sage Art: Hyper Typhoon Rasengan!"** Tatsu charged in and fired the technique, despite Anrokuzan attempting to absorb it, and completely shredded his body, leaving a large hole in the chest as he landed on the ground "Alright!"

" **My plan… the Five Great Nations… This can't be happening, I was going to rewrite history! I won't let it end like this!"** he started squirming " **If I fall then so will you, all of you will perish along with the ley line!"** and with that, he fell into the pool beneath the path and exploded, causing it to become unstable.

"Is that bad?"

"That is extremely bad, the ley line is going out of control." Kazuma told him.

"Okay, yeah that's bad. Sara quick, run now!"

"Right!" Sara started running, only for the path to collapse beneath her.

"Sara!" Tatsu reached out and grabbed her before she fell in "Don't worry, I've got you. I won't let go, I promise." the ground beneath him began to give way "Falling on the other hand…"

"Watch out!" Kazuma rushed over and grabbed them, only to fall in as well.

"Look out!" a green hand made of chakra grabbed all three of them.

Kazuma looked to see Shisui grab them using a larger Susanoo with wings, Sasuke, Itachi and Ayame in his other hand "Shisui!"

"This is what I'm capable of when my Susanoo is at full power. This is the Complete Body Susanoo."

Sara looked to see Sadai, Masako and the rest standing on the other side of the pool "Everyone."

"That was a close one, are all of you alright?" Shisui turned to see the ley line going even further out of control "Oh yeah, that."

"Tatsu." said Kazuma "I need you to give me the Flying Raijin kunai that I gave you earlier, I need it in order to completely seal the ley line."

"What? Oh yeah, right." Tatsu handed him the kunai.

"Stay back, I'll take care of it from here." Kazuma placed the kunai in the center point of the ley line " **Seal!"** he forced it into the ground, sealing the power of the ley line completely and ending the carnage "It's done."

"Nice." Tatsu gave a thumbs up from where he was supporting Sasuke, only to find that the two of them were glowing "What the hell? What's going on?"

"Now that Anrokuzan is dead and the sealing formula is in place once again, the pendulum of time is beginning to swing back so the two of you are about to be sent back to your own period of time."

"But hold on a minute, aren't you-?"

"Sorry guys, but I'm afraid it's time to go."

"Oh. I see." Tatsu didn't notice Kazuma slip a scroll into his pouch.

"Wait, so you're really leaving?" asked Sara.

"Yeah, I guess so. But don't you realize Sara? You did exactly what had to be done, you're an incredible queen so even if we're not here I know you're gonna do just fine on your own."

"Tatsu, I'll never forget you."

"And I won't forget this either, for a number of reasons."

"Alright, it's about time for you to leave." Kazuma told him.

"Wait hold on, you promised that you'd talk to me after the mission was over and done with."

"Yeah I did, but I didn't mean right now. Don't worry, I'm sure that we'll meet again one day."

"No listen, I need to talk to you about something really important and unless I tell you right now I may never be able to."

"I know the day will come when we meet again."

"Please wait, by any chance are you-?"

"You know I have a little brother back in the Hidden Leaf Village and you and he have the same name, when he grows up I can think of no better wish for him to become a shinobi exactly like you are."

Tears spilled down Tatsu's cheeks ' _Kazuma… brother…'_

"Tatsu thank you, you were right." Sara told him "Loran may still end up in ruins but I'll still have the most important part, the people of this city. I'll continue to do whatever I have to do for the sake of my people, because that's what you taught me to do Tatsu."

"...Yeah Sara, as long as your determination burns brightly and your resolve never fades, you can achieve just about anything. Don't ever forget that." and with that, he and Sasuke disappeared.

Kazuma watched as they vanished.

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"Tatsu! Sasuke!" Zaku pulled Kin onto his water hawk, only for the light from the ley line to disappear immediately afterwards, with Tatsu and Sasuke lying unconscious by the source of the ley line "What the hell?" he took them down and they rushed over "Tatsu, Sasuke, are you guys alright?"

Tatsu got up first and let out a groan "Oh god, it still hurts. Hey Sasuke, you hanging in there?"

"My eyes are pouring blood." Sasuke said dryly "What the hell do you think?"

"Sorry I asked." Tatsu looked over to the sealing formula, tears falling down his face without him noticing ' _Brother…'_

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Afterwards, they made their way out into the ruins.

Zaku shot them an incredulous look "You really expect us to believe that?"

"I couldn't make this up if I wanted to-" Tatsu suddenly bumped into Zaku "Hey perv, what the hell did you stop like that for?"

"Check it out." Zaku pointed.

"...Damn."

A young girl resembling Sara was approaching them.

10 minutes of discussion later…

"I was just passing by when I sensed a disturbance in the ley line." explained the girl "So I thought I should come and check it out."

Tatsu blinked "You sensed it?"

"A long time ago my mother was the queen of Loran and ruled over it, I inherited a little of her ability to sense the ley line though I need this to do it." she pulled out a worn looking Hidden Leaf Chakra Blade.

' _Oh yeah I forgot, I gave Sara my Hidden Leaf Chakra Blade._ Strange, that looks a lot like the Chakra Blades used by the Hidden Leaf."

"This is my mother's most precious keepsake, she once told me that a great hero appeared out of nowhere and gave it to her, then disappeared as suddenly as he had came."

"You mean your mother as in the queen of Loran?"

"That's right, Loran was ravaged by war and the whole city was destroyed but thanks in large part to the efforts of my mother our people managed to survive. I intend to carry on her will and live among the people like she did." then she bowed "Anyway, I'm sorry I took up so much of your time."

"Oh don't worry about it."

"If you'll excuse me." she bowed again and left.

"See? I told you I wasn't making it up."

"I know you weren't as well."

Tatsu looked to see a masked figure in a green kimono approach him, along with a masked figure in a purple kimono "Dragon and Izumi, what are you two doing here?"

"We heard you were on a mission in Loran and rushed over to assist you. Sasuke's eyes are losing their light because he's overused his Susanoo and now he's almost completely blind."

"What can we do?"

"There's only one thing to do, we'll have to transplant Itachi's eyes into Sasuke's body."

"You mean give him the Eternal Mangekyo?"

"Exactly. Come on, our hideout isn't very far from here."

"...Alright." Tatsu grabbed onto Dragon, the same with Izumi, Zaku and Kin, and they all disappeared in a green flash.

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Later at the hideout, Kin and Izumi were working on transplanting Itachi's eyes into Sasuke's body in a lab, having sedated him so he wouldn't feel any pain.

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Tatsu found himself outside in a desert area with Dragon standing in front of him "So what did you want to talk about?"

Dragon let out a long sigh "For the record, I know you're probably going to hate me for what I'm about to tell you, but to be honest I was looking forward to seeing face to face just what kind of man my little brother had become so I guess it evens out."

"Wait hold on, what the hell are you talking about?"

"That's right, like I said before you are my older brother." Dragon removed his mask, revealing himself as Kazuma "Hi."

Tatsu stood there frozen, his expression and face unreadable, but tears were freely streaming down his face.

"You're taking this better than I expected, I guess the Third Hokage didn't tell you anything about this. Well I shouldn't be surprised, there is the whole thing with ANBU secrecy and all that."

"Kazuma…" Tatsu slowly stepped forward "Brother…"

"Yes?"

Tatsu promptly slugged his brother in the gut as hard as he could, tears freely streaming down his face "WHY?! Why would you make me think you were dead?! Do you have any idea what I went through because you did that?! I was all alone for so long and I had almost no one! I almost committed suicide the day after your funeral! I never said anything, but all this time I was burning with hatred for Itachi for taking you away from me so I kept training as hard as I could hoping for the day when I could slaughter him! Then I started training with Hayate-sensei, Kakashi and Asuma and the rest, and I made friends with Lee, Sasuke, Naruto, Shika and the rest, and I was happy because they all helped make me stronger, because they all gave me something worth fighting for! But just when things were looking up, those Akatsuki bastards came and killed Hayate-sensei, they took him away from me! I killed them and avenged him but the damage was done, Hayate is dead and I'm all alone again! And now I- I don't even know what I'm saying anymore! Dammit, am I supposed to be overjoyed that my brother is alive or furious that he lied to me for so long?! I don't even know!"

Kazuma let out a long sigh "Tatsu, how old are you now?"

"I-I'm 17…"

"I see, you're 17 already are you? Time really flies. It must've been really hard for you Tatsu, I'm sorry, I truly am. I guess it's little consolation if I apologize now, after having put you through all of that pain."

"...No, it's fine." Tatsu wiped away his tears "After all, I'm your little brother aren't I? I can deal."

"Come here." Kazuma wrapped his arms around Tatsu "I can't remember the last time I hugged you like this, though I guess I can't blame anyone but myself for that."

"Why though?"

"Sit down, this story is going to take awhile."

 **A/N:**

 **This chapter was mainly to give Tatsu and Sasuke closures with their brothers after seeing them both die. And then having Tatsu learn that his brother is still alive.**

 **In case I didn't explain this before, dragon Sage Mode heightens the user's physical abilities several times over, like the Eight Gates without any physical side effects.**

 **Also, I'm thinking of having Itachi gain the Eternal Mangekyo by implanting Shisui's eyes into him. What do you think?**

 **To reader R: I honestly didn't think about Danzo realizing how he caused the whole thing with Pain, thanks for that idea. Also, as for you-know-who, I wasn't originally planning on having her appear again, but my pride overpowered that decision. I hate how some shows just cast some characters aside without giving them any sort of character development, even if they are minor characters. But she'll definitely die before the war starts, let me point that out. As for who will help Naruto, I'll give you a hint: it's someone that hasn't had any major screen time in awhile, and no it won't be Hinata.**

 **Also, I've got an idea for the future involving Shisui after he falls into the Naka River. Hint: it involves one of the movies from Part I.**


	16. Invasion of Pain: The Initial Assault

A peaceful day in the Leaf, nothing out of the ordinary.

That is, before Pain and his six paths and Konan appeared and quickly killed the shinobi on border patrol.

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Lee suddenly stopped and landed on a branch, then looked back ' _What's this feeling?'_

"What is it Lee?" asked Neji "It's not like you to lag behind like this."

"It's just, I have a bad feeling about something."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know, I just have a feeling."

"Well I'm sure it's nothing, let's keep going." Neji pressed on after Tenten and Guy, only to notice that Lee wasn't following him "Lee!"

"I'm really sorry Neji but I have to go, I have this horrible feeling that the village is in serious danger." Lee suddenly took off in the opposite direction.

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Shiho had found herself with two new partners for the decoding.

"Lord Jiraiya sent back three sources of information." Shikamaru pointed out.

Shiho nodded "That's correct. A ninja from the Hidden Rain that he had captured, one of Pain's bodies, and this." she showed him the photo of the message.

"Inoichi is in the Intel Division, they're working on the Hidden Rain ninja as we speak and I'm sure they'll get some information out of him. Shizune has made the autopsy on Pain's body her number one priority, I'm sure she'll learn something too."

"Plus we also have this message that we decoded with help from Naruto, Tatsu and Lord Danzo. _The real one's not among them._ That's what it says." Dosu pointed out.

"So now we have to take all of this information and somehow figure out the mystery behind this guy called Pain, the mystery of someone strong enough to take down even Lord Jiraiya."

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Inoichi was interrogating the Hidden Rain ninja captured by Jiraiya, only to find numerous genjutsu blocks inside of his mind.

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Shizune was trying to learn more about the black rods imbedded in Pain's body and what purpose they served.

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"The real one's not among them." Shikamaru repeated "Maybe he's telling us the six Pains are all some form of genjutsu, a jutsu cast by the female Akatsuki member who was there along with Pain, and she's the one attacking Lord Jiraiya from the shadows."

"No, that's too much of a long shot." Dosu pointed out "According to Lord Fukasaku when Master Jiraiya was killed he was stabbed by actual weapons from all six Pains. Well he supposedly took down three of them but they came back to life somehow, it does sound like some sort of genjutsu illusion."

"Common sense means absolutely nothing when it comes to the Akatsuki, there have been others who were immortal after all."

"Frankly right now we should just keep trying to come up with logical theories until we get some sort of report from the other sources."

"Yeah you're right, let's try to get at least a little closer to solving this mystery behind Pain before Tatsu or Naruto get back."

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After the border guards were killed, Pain launched the Animal Path into the village first to confuse them by only having a single target infiltrating the barrier surrounding the Leaf Village.

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Tatsu had finally calmed down and was now leisurely chatting with Kazuma "So you really secured the Leaf an alliance with the Land of Snow single handedly?"

Kazuma nodded "Yeah, I even got that autograph of Princess Koyuki for you."

"Wait, you mean you went through all of that just to get me an autograph?"

"I was going to do it anyway, I figured I might as well." he finished munching on his second rice ball "Hey how many do you have in there?"

"Let me check." Tatsu reached into his bag, only to see a scroll "What's this?" he checked the contents "Ask me about Shisui and the Land of Snow. When the hell did I get this?"

"My best guess would when I placed it in your bag at the end of that Loran mission."

"Oh yeah that makes sense- Wait, what? You knew it was me?"

"Not at first, but the more I watched you grow the more I realized how connected you two were."

"I see. So anyway, Shisui and the Land of Snow, spill."

Kazuma let out a long sigh and looked Tatsu dead in the eye "Shisui Uchiha is still alive, he's been in the Land of Snow for the past 8 years."

"...What?"

"He was in a coma for the first four years, and since he woke up he's been in hiding training to take Madara down. At this point he could probably beat even the Raikage."

"...What?!"

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Pain summoned all of his paths, and Konan, into the Hidden Leaf "Scatter." they spread out, and explosions started flying all over the place as well as various Rinnegan summoning animals.

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The Human Path began interrogating random Leaf shinobi, only to find that none of them had any information on Naruto's whereabouts, and promptly extracted their souls.

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Shizune finally deduced that the black rods were all chakra receivers even at that very moment, just as the building was shaken by Pain's attack.

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"What the-?" Dosu and Shikamaru rushed out to find the village in flames "What the hell is going on?"

"We'd better move out." Shikamaru told him "First we've gotta figure out exactly what's going on, then move with Choji and Ino and the rest while I protect my king, and then I'll join up with you."

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Ino noticed one of the Rinnegan summons "This is bad."

"What's the plan?" asked Choji.

"I'll go and notify intel, you get to work evacuating the civilians." and she ran off.

' _I've gotta get to Pa.'_

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Ino rushed into the Intel Division "Dad we've got problems, the village is under attack!"

They gave her their immediate attention.

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" **Water Style: Liquid Manipulation: Panther!"** Dosu appeared before a Rinnegan centipede attacking a young girl and her grandmother and formed a large water panther that fought off the centipede, then turned to the others "Are you alright?"

They nodded fearfully "Thank you so very much, thank you."

"Dosu!" then Asuma showed up "You alright?"

Dosu nodded "Just fine, now what's going on? What's the deal with all of this?"

"I'm not sure of the details exactly, but someone is attacking the Leaf Village. I've already contacted Lady Tsunade, the alarm should sound any minute now." he looked to see an explosion in the distance "That's close. Go help in evacuating the wounded to the hospital."

"Right." then Dosu grabbed the others and took off.

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Tsunade stared out at the carnage ' _What's going on?'_

A ninja appeared in the room "Barrier Corps reporting ma'am, there was an intruder that entered through our air space. We sensed just one target, but immediately after detection several attacks were confirmed across the city."

Then an ANBU appeared "Analysis Corps reporting, enemy strength estimated at three battalions in size."

Tsunade frowned ' _A foe capable of organizing this much military power unnoticed, it must be them.'_

"Lady Tsunade, a witness reported that the intruder wore black with a red cloud pattern."

' _The Akatsuki. They've finally come._ Sound the emergency alarm, and then recall Naruto and Tatsu."

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Homura and Koharu were startled by the sudden shaking amongst the carnage "What's going on out there?"

"The Akatsuki has begun its assault."

They looked to see Danzo standing in the doorway "Danzo. Are you serious? The Akatsuki are really here?"

"Yes and the one leading this assault is Pain, the head of the Akatsuki and the one who defeated Jiraiya."

"You mean that so soon after killing Jiraiya Pain has actually come here personally to attack the Hidden Leaf Village?"

"Yes, the Akatsuki has been hunting the jinchuuriki hosts in order to accumulate the Tailed Beasts. They have the One-Tail of the Hidden Sand, and it's believed that most of the jinchuuriki have fallen into their hands."

"Then that means that their target here is…"

"That's right. The Fourth Hokage's legacy Naruto Uzumaki, and yet despite the danger involved the Fifth Hokage is trying to summon Naruto back."

"To do such a thing would be exactly like pouring oil onto a fire."

"I know, and I also know that even if Naruto does return there is no guarantee that he will be able to defeat Pain. You two must attempt to dissuade her from summoning him back."

"What about you?"

"I will go down and fight Pain myself."

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Yugao rushed out of her apartment when she heard the carnage "What was that?"

"Stop!" then Kiba suddenly showed up "You've gotta get back inside."

"Kiba, what's going on?"

"It's the Akatsuki, they're here mounting a direct attack." he looked to see a Rinnegan centipede approaching them and motioned for Yugao to get back "Just stay back, I'll handle this." he drew his claws and began channeling chakra into the blades " **Lightning Style: Tunneling Fang!"** with lightning chakra powering his Tunneling Fang, Kiba promptly tore through the centipede and shredded it, then rushed over to Yugao "You alright?"

"Yeah, what about you?"

"Don't worry about me, just hurry up and take the underground tunnel to the evacuation shelter. I can take you part of the way. No arguments, if anything happened to you or your kid then Tatsu would have my head on a pike."

"Kiba… you're a good friend."

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Ino looked around at the chaos, buildings destroyed and bodies scattered, and quickly formed a certain hand seal " **Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** she summoned 10 clones "Half of you spread out and care for the wounded, the others are with me." and they scattered.

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Kazuma helped Sasuke, whose eyes were bandaged, to his feet "You need to rest, adjusting to the Mangekyo takes time. Are you in any pain?"

Sasuke shook his head "I can bare it, they fit quite nicely. I can feel my brother's visual prowess flowing through me, I can tell that I've already become so much stronger." then he tensed.

"You notice it too huh?"

"Yeah, I've got a bad feeling."

"You guys noticed it?" Tatsu guessed from the doorway "I've got a bad feeling something big is going down back in the Hidden Leaf."

"You guessed right." Kazuma's eyes hardened "The Shadow Clone I had watching over the village has been destroyed. It's the Akatsuki, they're invading in an all out assault."

"We've gotta move."

"But it'll take us three days on foot, we'll never make it in time, not to mention the fact that there's Kin and the rest."

"I'll take them." Sasuke slowly stood "I'll use the complete body form of the Susanoo, it can fly and get us there in a few hours."

"Sasuke no, that might end up destroying your eyes." Kin protested from the doorway, with Zaku and Izumi right behind her

"Better my eyes than the village." Sasuke ripped off the bandages revealing his new Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, his eyes pouring blood as his new complete Susanoo burst into life, destroying the hideout as he grabbed everyone and placed them inside the chest "Hang on, I'm not used to this." and they flew off.

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Ino rushed to the hospital and observed the wounded "There are already so many, what's going on here?"

One of the medics approached her "Good you're just in time Ino, you're going to have to take command."

"What about Shizune?"

"I'm afraid she's not here."

"Of course, the autopsy."

"There are so many wounded that the medical ninja are simply overwhelmed, we really need someone to take charge and give orders."

"I'm just a Shadow Clone, but I'll do what I can."

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Kosuke, a messenger toad, prepared to head back " **Alright then, I'll return and call Naruto back home."**

"Good, and hurry." Tsunade told him.

Unfortunately, that's when Koharu and Homura chose to show up "Stop!"

' _Oh great, more of a headache.'_

"We must leave Naruto at Mount Myoboku."

"You wanna run that by me again?"

"That's right, we understand that it's the leader of the Akatsuki who has attacked our village."

"How did you find that out?"

"Danzo is the one who informed us, he also says that they're after the power that Naruto possesses as a jinchuuriki."

"They are, and what of it?"

"Last time we gave you wide reign but now conditions are different, Naruto is still a child and the assailant we're talking about is the one who brought Jiraiya down. If Naruto is taken down and the Kyuubi falls into their hands-"

Tsunade shut them up by grabbing them by their collars.

"Wh-What are you doing?"

Tsunade reflected on Naruto defending her from Kabuto, Naruto's vow to avenge Jiraiya's death, Jiraiya's words of aiding the next generation.

"You stop this, unhand us now Tsunade! Would you dare to raise your hand against us councilors? What are you thinking?"

"No, what are you two thinking? How long do you intend to treat him like a child? The Will of Fire has passed to him and now it's growing, Naruto is striving to surpass Jiraiya this very minute! That's right, he's not some hidden weapon for us to use as a deterrent to war! He's a true shinobi and a defender of the Hidden Leaf, he's Naruto Uzumaki!" she threw the both of them onto the ground "Jiraiya, Lady Chiyo of the Sand and Sarutobi-sensei all have what you two clearly lack, and even Danzo has it to some extent, and that is the power to believe. Just as my grandfather the First Hokage believed in you and entrusted the Hidden Leaf Village to you, it is time for you to believe in an entrust the Leaf to the next generation."

They both slowly got back to their feet "...Do as you please." and they walked away, hanging their heads.

' _Finally, that's one unnecessary headache down.'_

"Well said."

Tsunade looked to see Danzo standing in the doorway "Great, another headache."

"I'm here to discuss the plan of action."

"Well firstly-"

"Lady Tsunade!" then Shizune rushed in.

"Did you find something?"

"Yes." Shizune held out the chakra receiver "Look at this."

"What is it?"

"They're receiver-like objects, they respond to chakra signals. They're embedded in the body of Pain that Jiraiya brought back."

"Receivers?"

"According to what Lord Fukasaku said, every one of the six Pains had these stuck in them, studded all over their bodies and faces."

"Does that mean that the six Pains receive some kind of chakra signal across their whole bodies? Is that how they synchronize their actions?"

"That part isn't entirely clear yet."

"A receiver, they could use it to transmit chakra to each other or perhaps a wireless radio of some sort."

"And this thing is still reacting even now, I think that this must be connected to the secret of Pain's strength. With data from the Interrogation Corps, we'll figure this out."

"According to the intel division the enemy has come here in search of Naruto ." Danzo pointed out "This enemy who infiltrated the village is Pain without any doubts."

"Pain is here?"

"We must relay all of this to Lord Fukasaku as well."

"Agreed." Tsunade turned to Kosuke "You, messenger frog, when you recall Naruto I want you to relay this intel."

Kosuke gave a thumbs up " **Understood."** then an arrow suddenly shot through the window and pierced him against the wall, dead.

"What the-?!" Tsunade checked out the arrow and saw a note tied to it "The mission is completed, Mukade has been terminated. We sensed a disturbance and we're currently on our way back. PS, Zaku was the one who shot this arrow and I apologize if it hit anything. Tatsu. Great, now we can't even summon Naruto back."

"That's not necessarily true." Danzo pointed out "When a summoning animal dies, their name disappears from the contract. Surely the toads will notice that and realize that something is wrong."

"But still we can't sit around and wait. Shizune take the data from the autopsy to the Interrogation Corps, find out who and what Pain is."

"Yes ma'am." Shizune promptly rushed off.

"ANBU Black Ops Cell B, escort Shizune and then guard the Interrogation Corps. Don't let Pain get near them."

"Yes ma'am." the ANBU disappeared.

"Meanwhile I'll await reports on the roof and I'll start healing all of the injured through Katsuyu. And Danzo-"

"My Foundation agents will aid in evacuating the civilians." Danzo told her "Meanwhile, I myself will go down and fight Pain personally to buy them time."

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Konan and various paths of Pain were interrogating the Leaf shinobi on Naruto's whereabouts, then kill them when they didn't comply.

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On the roof of the Hokage Mansion, Tsunade summoned Katsuyu and use her Fission jutsu to divide herself into hundreds of smaller versions of herself to aid in healing the injured.

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"Iruka!" Mizuki found Iruka lying in the middle of the road and quickly pulled him out of the way of a series of explosions, then checked his pulse and froze ' _He's dead…'_

That was when the Deva Path dropped in front of him "Tell me where the Kyuubi jinchuuriki is, or else I will kill you."

' _That cloak… he's an Akatsuki.'_

"Tell me now."

' _Naruto…'_ Mizuki looked down at Iruka's body ' _If Naruto finds out that these guys killed Iruka of all people…_ You're wasting your time, I have no intention of telling you Akatsuki scum anything!"

"I see, well then I have no use for you." Pain thrusted forward a black rod.

Then a certain Kakashi appeared and stopped it with his bare hand "You created a loud diversion so you could hunt from the shadows did you?"

"Kakashi…" Mizuki breathed.

"Mizuki, take Iruka's body and get out of here. Leave this to me."

"Right, and Kakashi? Be careful." then he took Iruka's body and took off.

"Now it's just the two of us."

"Then I shall ask you instead." Deva decided "Where is the Kyuubi?"

"What you're doing is totally pointless you know. The people here are different from the ones in other villages, even if it means dying there's not a single one of us who would ever sell out a comrade to people like you." he promptly snapped the rod in half with his bare hand.

Deva aimed a kick at Kakashi's head.

Kakashi ducked underneath the kick and formed some hand seals " **Earth Style: Mud Wall!"** he formed a mud wall.

Deva drew another black rod from his sleeve and stabbed Kakashi in the shoulder.

" **Lightning Blade!"** Kakashi thrusted forward a Lightning Blade.

Deva then used his chakra in the black rod to disrupt Kakashi and make him lose focus, allowing him to easily dodge the Lightning Blade.

' _What was that?'_

"The Copy Ninja Kakashi Hatake, I am honored to meet you."

Kakashi removed the rod from his shoulder and broke away.

"Where is the Kyuubi?"

"That's a stupid question." Kakashi thrusted forward another Lightning Blade.

" **Almighty Push."** Deva sent Kakashi flying back with an invisible force, shattering the Mud Wall behind him.

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Asuma made his way through the village only to notice a large ruckus "What's going on over there?"

"Kakashi is fighting one of the enemies alone."

Asuma looked to see Danzo land behind him "And you're out here because?"

"Because like your father, I will gladly lay down my life for this village. For now, our main objective is to back Kakashi up while the others evacuate the civilians."

"Right."

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Kakashi emerged from the rubble ' _What was that jutsu? It felt different from a blast wave, but there's definitely a blast area with him at the center._ Alright then, how will you counter this? **Lightning Beast Running Jutsu!"** he formed a lightning dog made of chakra and sent it charging forward.

" **Almighty Push."** Pain easily destroyed the attack with his Almighty Push.

' _So he can repel both physical attacks and ninjutsu. Impressive. Okay, how should I-'_

Then the Asura Path appeared behind him.

' _Another one?'_

Asura fired a volley of missles at him, engulfing him in an explosion, then retracted his arm.

"You're mine!" Kakashi swiped at him with a Lightning Blade.

Asura ducked and dodged the attack with ease.

' _He wasn't even fazing me!'_ then he looked at Deva ' _I see, Lord Fukasaku did mention they shared a connected field of vision.'_

Asura retreated to join up with Deva.

' _I can't believe Master Jiraiya took on six of them at once, that's just insane.'_

Asura grew two more faces on each side of his head and removed his robe to reveal six arms and a blade-like tail sticking out the back.

' _What?!'_

" **Universal Pull."** Deva used his gravity manipulation to pull Kakashi forward.

' _That's it, that's his ability!'_ Kakashi drew a chain from his bag and wrapped it around himself and a nearby boulder, stopping him before he hit the blade ' _Pain… I've got no chance if I fight them alone. I need backup, and I need to let the others know what this one's ability is! I have to hold them off as long as I can!'_

Deva increased his pull, causing Kakashi to surge forward unwillingly.

' _Dammit!'_

Asura stabbed Kakashi through the chest with his blade.

Then Kakashi disappeared in a surge of lightning, electrocuting Asura.

' _A Lightning Style Shadow Clone.'_

" **Wind Style: Duel Jade Wind!"**

" **Wind Style: Vacuum Blade Shuriken!"**

Deva then dodged two slashes of wind and two wind-enhanced shuriken just in time, though Asura was shredded.

Then Asuma appeared, with Danzo right behind him "That's one down and one to go, isn't that right Kakashi?"

Then Kakashi emerged from the rubble, his Lightning Blade dissipating "Well I did have something in mind, but this will help me preserve some chakra. Thank you."

"Are you okay?"

"For the most part yeah."

Danzo studied Kakashi ' _A trap Shadow Clone in an attempt to subdue one of the enemies, and only using substitution and Shadow Clones in order to determine the abilities of his enemy. He hasn't changed, skilled as always._ Kakashi, do you still have enough chakra?"

Kakashi sighed "Well I've already had to use my Lightning Style Shadow Clone and that exhausted over half of my chakra. Honestly, a prolonged battle against such an adept opponent will be tight. However, I figured out a little about his abilities."

"Enough talk." Deva charged forward, easily repelling multiple attacks as he advanced with his Almighty Push.

"Okay." Kakashi threw a kunai with a mini smoke bomb.

Deva repelled it, leaving the area engulfed in smoke.

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Asuma hid with Danzo and Kakashi behind some rubble "What just happened back there?"

"He repelled all of our attacks." explained Kakashi "Using himself as the epicenter his jutsu allows him to pull in or push objects away, similar to the magnetic laws of attraction and repulsion. But it seems he can't use that jutsu continuously, I know for certain that there's an interval of time before he can activate the next jutsu."

Asuma looked out at the bodies of those foolish enough to attack Deva head on "Everybody else was taken out, if he can repel our attacks then how can we defeat him? The interval between jutsu is pretty short, too short for us to get close."

"Perhaps, but it's our only chance. I have an idea, but I'll need you two to help me for it to work."

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Deva slowly wandered through the smoke ' _Now what will their next move be?'_

' _Here goes!'_ Kakashi rose and aimed a kunai straight at Deva's face.

Deva pushed him back with another invisible force, sending Kakashi tumbling back "Nice movements and a wide range of jutsu, I need to kill you so you won't become a nuisance to me later." he summoned another black rod.

' _Now!'_

" **Wind Style: Vacuum Blast Barrage!"**

" **Lightning Style: Duel Jade Thunder!"**

Two attacks, one being made up of two blasts of green lightning and the other being a barrage of sharp blasts of wind, slammed into Deva simultaneously ' _There!'_

"Too slow." Deva repelled the attacks with an Almighty Push, sending Danzo and Asuma flying back by extension, only to find himself bound by chains ' _Kakashi Hatake… he hid this chain underground before his attack.'_

" **Lightning Blade!"** Kakashi thrusted a Lightning Blade forward, only for Asura to appear in front of him and take the blow, being shredded even further in the process.

' _The other Pain, he could still move?!'_

The Asura promptly exploded in a bright flash of light.

When it was over, Kakashi was trapped amongst lots of rubble ' _Dammit!'_

Deva walked towards him "It appears you're not pretending, you really can't move."

' _I was too late…'_ he looked over to where Asuma and Danzo were emerging from the rubble, both sporting clear wounds.

"I know you're not a Shadow Clone, this time I'll make certain you die. It's over, but just to be absolutely safe I'll keep my distance." he pulled a nail up from the ground using his gravity manipulation "You'll know Pain." he shot it forward.

Kakashi's head flew back, then slumped forward.

Deva stared at the remains of Asura, then took off.

Asuma got to his feet and spat out some blood, then spotted Kakashi's supposedly dead body amongst the rubble "Kakashi!" he slammed his hand against the ground "Dammit!"

"Asuma… worry about that later…"

Asuma looked up "You're still…" then he looked around "Where's Danzo?"

"Forget that… if you can still move… you must report Pain's abilities to Lady Tsunade… and have her set up countermeasures…"

"But Kakashi-"

"Mourn later… you must hurry…"

"...Right…"

Then Asura suddenly struggled towards them "You sure are stubborn." and it locked and loaded another missile.

' _Dammit, it can still move!_ Asuma, run!" Kakashi urged.

"...I'm coming back for you, just hang in there." Asuma promptly rushed off, just

' _With the chakra that I have left it's impossible to destroy his entire body, if I use that jutsu one more time then I'll exhaust all of my stamina and chakra. Without a doubt, I will…'_

' _Come on, come on, come on!'_ Asuma kept running, but the missile kept tracking him.

' _This information must get to those who still live. Right now, this is the only way to save the Hidden Leaf Village.'_ Kakashi activated his Mangekyo Sharingan, and with the last of his chakra he used Kamui to warp away the missile.

' _Of course.'_ Asura realized how Kakashi saved himself before ' _He must have used that ocular jutsu to divert that attack too…'_ then it fell apart.

' _Well… it seems that… this is it for me too…'_ Kakashi felt his vision blurring and eventually going dark ' _Obito… Rin…'_ then it went black.

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Kakashi found himself in a void, staring at a reflection of himself ' _This is as far as it goes, me being your eyes…'_ he saw images of Naruto, Tatsu and the rest of their generation ' _I couldn't even protect Rin… I broke my promise to you… please, forgive me…'_ then his surroundings turned dark, two figures holding his hands, along with a third, all fading from his sight one by one ' _Obito… Rin… sensei… I guess I'll be joining you now…'_ he started wandering until he saw something.

A lone figure sat in front of him by a fire "Is that you Kakashi?"

"So this is where you were." Kakashi sat down beside him.

"Now that we're both here, will you tell me your tale?"

"Yeah, but it's a long story so I wanna take my time."

"Yeah, that's fine."

"Where to begin, father…"

"As much as I hate to interrupt your reunion, I need some answers."

Kakashi looked to see Tatsu beside them, munching on a fish "What are you doing here? And where did you get fish?"

"This is Limbo, think of something and it appears. But never mind that right now, why the hell are you here?"

"You'd better sit down, this is going to take a while."

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Tsunade bolted up from her healing circle and walked to the ledge of the roof "Lady Katsuyu has made contact with everyone in the village." then she punched one of the pillars, completely shattering it "My apologies, let us continue."

"Lady Tsunade!" then Asuma suddenly bolted onto the rooftop "We've figured out the profiles of one of the enemies."

"Yes, go on Asuma."

"He's male, appears to be between 25 and 30 years of age, distinguishing features are six nose piercings and 7 studs in each ear. His ability is a jutsu that simulates magnetism, he can attract targeted objects to himself but he can also repel all ninjutsu attacks. However, after he uses either of those jutsu there's a 5 second interval for which he can't utilise any other jutsu."

' _5 seconds, that's all?_ Nice work reporting this, we'll suffer fewer casualties now. Now Lady Katsuyu will pass the intel on to everyone."

"Lord Danzo and myself assisted Kakashi against two of the enemy, Danzo went MIA after one of our plans failed to harm the enemy."

"Danzo is engaging another one of the enemy right now, assisting others against one of the enemy."

"...I see. And Kakashi?"

"...Just hurry and help the wounded, then return to the front lines." and she walked away without another word.

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Tatsu suddenly opened his eyes "Sasuke, put as much speed into this Susanoo as you possibly can."

"What's going on?" asked Kazuma.

"You were right, the Akatsuki are attacking. It's Pain, the one who killed Jiraiya."

"How are things looking?"

"Not good, Tsunade is being forced to use Katsuyu to heal everybody and Kakashi has already been KIA."

"What?!" Sasuke's head snapped towards him "Kakashi's dead?"

"And from what I gather, Iruka was killed too in the chaos. We _definitely_ can't let Naruto find out about that one- Sasuke, tree! TREE!"

"What?!" Sasuke shifted his Susanoo so they barely avoided a tree.

"Eyes ahead stupid, eyes ahead!"

"Look out!" they slammed into a mountain.

"Your directional skills suck worse than Zoro!"

"Who?"

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Ino's Shadow Clone was waiting for Inoichi and the Interrogation Division to finish interrogating the Hidden Rain ninja ' _Dad, the village is depending on this.'_

"Sorry for interrupting."

Ino looked to see Shizune enter "Lady Shizune."

"I was ordered to report here by Lady Hokage."

"Did you discover something?"

"Yes, I'll share my findings. By combining my information with the intelligence you're extracting, we'll figure out who Pain is."

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The Human and Animal Paths made their way, only for Human to stop while Animal continued on and formed a hand seal " **Summoning Jutsu."** she prepared a summon.

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"So what did you find?" asked Ino.

"This." Shizune held up a black rod "Each of the Pains had black rods like this one embedded in their bodies, we believe that this is the key to explaining their power."

"So what then, does that mean that they're transmitting chakra to each other? That would make it something like the secret jutsu used by the Yamanaka clan."

"Ninja with the same eyes as the Sage of the Six Paths." Ibiki noted "The legendary Rinnegan bearing forefather of all ninja, if they truly exist then it's no surprise that they could use all kinds of jutsu-" he was cut off by shaking "What was that?"

One of the ANBU checked his radio "It seems they've shown up here as well."

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Three ANBU attempted to defeat the gigantic multi-headed Rinnegan dog with an earth, wind and lightning combination, only for it to survive and continue.

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"What should we do now Lady Shizune?" asked Ino.

"We'll have to leave it to them." Shizune told her, followed by the wall being shattered, courtesy of a large Rinnegan rhino.

From within the rhino's mouth, Animal saw Shizune holding the black rod "As I thought, this is it." the rhino charged forward.

Katsuyu appeared at the last second to protect everyone "It seems I made it in time."

"Lady Katsuyu, thank you so much." Shizune told her.

The rhino was joined by the multi-headed dog.

Then the three ANBU appeared "They are powerful summonings, everyone please be careful."

Inoichi stared hard at Animal "There's no mistake, I saw her inside the memories of that Hidden Rain ninja. But how can this be?"

"What's wrong?" asked Ino.

"When I saw her she was a corpse."

' _And now that corpse is using a Summoning Jutsu, but each of the Six Pains is only supposed to be able to use a single jutsu. Something's wrong, according to Lord Fukasaku the only Pain who should be able to use summonings is the one Lady Shizune did the autopsy on. What could this mean? Master Jiraiya already defeated the only Pain with this ability._ Dad, I need more details and I might be able to figure this out."

"Right now? But-"

"Leave this to the ANBU and me." Ibiki assured "Get out of here."

"Dad, we have to go." Ino urged "We have to uncover Pain's true identity."

"She's right." Shizune told him "Let's go, we have to hurry and get to the Cypher Division."

"I'm going too, I can support your jutsu even if I am only a Shadow Clone."

"...Alright." Inoichi finally agreed.

Ino shared a nod with Ibiki and an ANBU "Let's go!" and she took off with Inoichi and Shizune.

Ibiki blocked the path once they were gone "You'll have to get through us first!"

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Lee sped on towards the Leaf ' _I don't know what's going on there but I definitely have a bad feeling, just please let me make it there in time.'_

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Despite capturing the rhino and the Animal Path, Ibiki was unable to get any information.

The Animal Path promptly escaped, wounding Ibiki by summoning a gigantic Rinnegan bird on his stomach.

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Ino looked around at the carnage engulfing the village ' _This is bad, at this rate we may not be able to hold out much longer. Maybe I can deal some sort of major damage to at least one of them if I can use some of my new jutsu.'_

"Ino!" a voice called.

Ino looked down to see Dosu, Choji and Shikamaru and rushed down to join them "This is a disaster."

"Yes, but there isn't much we can do." Dosu pointed out "None of us are strong enough to land even a scratch on these guys, even Kakashi wasn't able to hurt them and he was probably the strongest aside from Tsunade."

"I know, but-"

"Right now we have to focus on evacuating the wounded." Shikamaru told her "From here we split up to locate and rescue any civilians who haven't made it out yet. I'll check out things in Block A, Dosu go to Block C, Choji to Block D."

"I'll go to Block F."

"Right. Scatter!" and they spread out.

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Ino rushed towards Block F as explosions sounded across the village "Hello? Is there anyone still here? Anyone at all?"

"Help me…" a weak voice moaned out.

Ino stopped running "Where are you? Can you hear me?" she rushed over and found an old man trapped underneath some rubble, and she quickly freed him ' _How could someone do something so horrible, even for the Akatsuki?'_

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Tatsu tensed ' _What's this feeling? Something else big must be going down in the Hidden Leaf Village, but for once I can't tell if it's good or bad.'_

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Having sent a Shadow Clone to help with the wounded, Ino rushed off to aid other shinobi in combat.

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The Naraka Path was currently kicking the crap out of two chunin, and once they were down he began interrogating them "Is Naruto Uzumaki in this village or not? Tell me now."

"You want Naruto? You can forget it, Naruto is one of us and we would never sell out a comrade to guys like you!" they spat out.

Naraka promptly grabbed them by the necks "The Will of Fire then?"

Ino peaked from around a corner ' _So that's one of the Akatsuki, even at a glance I can tell that this guy alone is a lot stronger than either Hidan or Kakuzu.'_

"If you do not answer my question then you will have no future, so I will ask you again." he then used his ability to summon the King of Hell.

Only the chunin could see it "What the hell is that?"

"Will I find Naruto Uzumaki somewhere in this village or won't I? Tell me now."

"I don't know anything, now get lost!"

"I see, then I shall pass judgement on you." Naraka then proceeded to rip their souls out through their tongues, allowing the King of Hell to devour them whole, killing one of them "It seems that you truly did not know."

Ino stared in horror ' _What's going on? I couldn't even see that Akatsuki do anything, but that guy on the left just fell limp. What did that enemy do to him? Was that chunin killed without being able to fight back at all? Whatever it is I've gotta get out of here, I don't stand a chance without knowing what I'm up against.'_ she started to move, but her sandal creaked loudly ' _Damn, did he hear me?'_

Naraka heard this and dropped the chunin, then slowly walked towards where Ino was hidden.

" **Wind Style: Vacuum Bullets!"**

Naraka was forced to dodge the multiple small bullets of wind ' _So he's come too.'_

Danzo leapt down in front of him "You Akatsuki have caused enough damage to the Leaf and its people, I will personally put a stop to your destruction myself." he held a hand behind his back and gestured towards Ino, using ANBU hand signs to tell her to get away from there and rescue any nearby civilians, then turned back to Naraka " **Wind Style: Vacuum Shuriken!"** he breathed some wind chakra into two shuriken and fired them off.

Naraka stopped them with his black receivers and reversed their fire.

Danzo leapt over them and met a kick from Naraka with his own kick, then formed a quick hand seal and inhaled " **Wind Style: Vacuum Blast Barrage!"** he fired several sharp blasts of wind, slashing through the rubble and a few nearby buildings.

Naraka dodged by ducking at the last second, losing a few strands of hair, and then took the opportunity to catch Danzo in his blind spot and kick him into a wall.

' _I let my guard down. I haven't seen battle in quite some time, I should have gotten my muscles limbered up again. No, that's no excuse.'_

Naraka looked in the direction where Ino was hiding.

"Your opponent is right in front of you." Danzo emerged and wiped the blood away from his bruised lip "An average attack like that won't be able to kill me."

"Hidden Leaf elder Danzo Shimura, your death will bring the shinobi world that much closer to peace."

"We shall see. **Wind Style: Vacuum Blast!"** he fired a sharp blast of wind.

Naraka sliced through it with a black receiver.

Danzo looked back to where Ino once was ' _Good, she got away.'_

Naraka then kneed Danzo in the face, sending him to the ground.

' _Damn, I let my guard down. Breaking Lord Second's most important rule, never let your guard down. But hopefully others will survive even if I fall.'_

Naraka then grabbed Danzo by the throat "Now then, is Naruto Uzumaki in this village or isn't he? I know you know Danzo, so tell me."

"So, you're after the Kyuu- Naruto Uzumaki then are you?"

"It appears that you do know Naruto Uzumaki, so tell me where he is now."

"I may look like a weak and frail old man, but I was the teammate of the Third Hokage, and a student of the Second Hokage of the Village Hidden in the Leaves, and Naruto Uzumaki has inherited my master's Will of Fire. Long ago, everyone considered him to be nothing but a nuisance or a weapon for the village because of what he carries inside of him. I was absolutely certain of it, and so were so many others. However, the boy did not allow his cursed fate to discourage him. With unending optimism and determination, and a Will of Fire rivalling even that of Lord First Hokage, he faced one challenge after another and overcame them. He's not just a weapon or a nuisance, he is Naruto Uzumaki, a proud and respectable jonin of the Village Hidden in the Leaves, and he is key to the protection of the Leaf and for future generations to come!"

Unfazed, Naraka tightened his grip on Danzo's throat "Enough, you've rambled on for far too long already. Now then, I'll give you one more chance. Do you know where Naruto Uzumaki is or don't you? Answer me right now or I will kill you in a heartbeat."

' _Naruto Uzumaki, I have faith that you shall overcome the death of your master and carry on his legacy. The iron will you carry within your heart will teach everyone in the Leaf, past generations to future generations, to follow your will._ As I said before, Naruto Uzumaki is a key to the protection and prosperity of the Leaf. Ask all you want, I will not breath another single word to you Akatsuki."

"I see. In that case…" Naraka summoned the King of Hell.

' _It seems this is it for me. Hiruzen, it's my turn now. Just as you sacrificed your life to protect the Leaf, I shall do the same.'_

"Die."

" **Water Style: Raging Waves!"**

Naraka threw Danzo back and leapt away to dodge a stream of water "Another one."

Ino leapt down between Danzo and Naraka "Your fight is with me now. I was taught by someone I deeply love that in the ninja world, running and taking shortcuts won't let you amount to anything in life. I made a vow with that person that one day I would become a water style master surpassing even Lord Second. I refuse to choose an escape route, because Tatsu won't be at the end of that shorter path. _He's got a hole grinded into his chest, if I can hit that then maybe I can deal some serious damage.'_

Naraka drew a rod and blitzed forward.

' _He's so fast!'_ Ino found herself forced on the defensive and evasive, trying to avoid being hit by the enemy's attacks, only to soon find herself lying on the ground.

Naraka leapt at Ino, sending her tumbling back.

Ino quickly recovered and continued dodging ' _One thing's for sure, if he even catches me then he'll just kill me with whatever strange jutsu he used on the others. I have to find a way to hit him with a sneak attack.'_ she suddenly found herself against a wall.

Naraka grabbed her by the neck, easily kicked Danzo away after a sneak attack, and summoned the King of Hell "Is Naruto Uzumaki in this village or not? Tell me now."

' _I get it, so this is what you see if you get caught.'_

"Speak. Answer me."

' _I think I'm starting to figure out this guy's ability._ I'm not gonna tell you Akatsuki anything about him!" her soul began getting ripped out, and once the King of Hell grabbed it she fell limp in his grip.

"I see. Then I shall pass-"

Ino disappeared in a sudden puff of smoke.

"A Shadow Clone?"

" **Water Style: Tsunami Shuriken!"** the real Ino appeared and pinned Naraka to the wall with two water-enhanced shuriken with actual shuriken at the center, one for each arm, then formed another hand seal " **Water Style: Ripping Torrent!"** she hit him in the gut with a spiralling column of water, grinding a hole even deeper into his gut and sending him through the wall. I am a chunin honored with the name of the strongest trio to ever exist in the Leaf. My surname is Yamanaka, my given name is Ino, you will remember me!"

The Naraka freed himself after a moment "It seems you are more skilled than I anticipated, and your mastery over water style is quite impressive. Perhaps for now my best option would be to retreat." and he fled.

Ino then knelt down beside Danzo "Don't move, this will only take a minute." and she began healing his wounds with her medical ninjutsu.

"Where did you learn that water shuriken jutsu?" asked Danzo.

"I saw you breath wind chakra into those shuriken and fire them off, so I tried to do the same with my water chakra."

"...You realize you just created a new water style jutsu in a matter of moments."

"Yeah well I've been working on a defensive water jutsu for about 2 weeks and an improved version of the Water Gun Jutsu used by the Second Mizukage. I haven't told anyone about it though, I was hoping to keep it under wraps until I've got both of them completely perfected."

' _...She's unbelievable, she claims she'll surpass Lord Second's water style, and now I think she might.'_

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Kiba and his clan quickly launched an attack on the Preta Path, knowing that he could absorb ninjutsu and his weakness was physical attacks.

However, the Preta Path saved himself by using the dead first Animal Path as a meat shield to defend himself.

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An ANBU in an eagle mask noticed something "Behind you!"

Tsunade turned around cautiously ' _Six nose piercings and seven studs in each ear, it's definitely him.'_

Deva landed on the roof in front of her "It's been a long time Lady Tsunade, the last remaining member of the Legendary Sannin. You and I, we have something to discuss."

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Shino and his fellow clansmen quickly confronted Konan, only for her to use paper clones rigged with paper bombs in an attempt to kill them.

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Tsunade was quick to recognize Deva as Yahiko "Wait, you're that child aren't you? That boy from long ago."

"So you do remember me then." Deva noted.

"You know him?" asked one of the ANBU.

Tsunade nodded "Yes I do."

"Who or what is he?"

"A god who restores order." Deva stated flatly.

"It seems like he's not in his right mind."

"Naruto Uzumaki. Where is he?"

"No one knows." Tsunade lied.

"We now have almost all the jinchuuriki so the balance of power between shinobi villages is no longer maintained by Tailed Beasts. It's meaningless to continue harboring the Kyuubi now."

"So your target truly is Naruto after all."

"The rise of conflicts are eminent, the kindling coals of war are smoldering everywhere and we shall control those wars, if you cooperate with us then we would not be adversed to helping you. From the state of this village, you ought to have a sense of our strength by now."

"Don't underestimate the Five Kage, you are only terrorists seeking to destroy the peace that our predecessors strived so desperately to achieve and maintain. We will not heed you."

"Such arrogance!" Deva flared his chakra to the point where it nearly blew the ANBU off their feet "What you like to call peace has only brought violence down upon us all."

"I cannot say that everything the Leaf did in the past was just or correct, but your actions here are unforgivable."

"Be careful what you say, this is your final warning from a god. Where is Naruto?"

Nothing.

"Speak."

"We will pour every ounce of power that we possess into bringing you down, I have nothing more to say except that you're wrong about one thing. You've made a huge error, what you desire most you shall never have."

"...If you think that the shinobi of the Hidden Leaf can successfully protect Naruto from me-"

"No!" then she smirked "Naruto is much stronger than you know."

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Inoichi's group huddled up to discuss the situation.

"There are six Pains, and each one can only use one jutsu type." Shizune noted "That woman used a Summoning Jutsu, and that means the Pain that Lord Jiraiya defeated was brought back in a different body."

"There's no mistake." Inoichi insisted "When she was brought to that tower, that woman was undeniably a corpse."

"When you saw her, did she have one of these embedded in her?" Shizune held up one of the black rods.

"No, I'm positive that she didn't."

"So Lord Fukasaku was right, incredibly Pain somehow has the ability to bring the dead back to life. Plus he can substitute himself in other bodies at will and makes them move by implanting in them these black chakra receivers."

"So what are you saying?" asked Ino's Shadow Clone "Are all six of those Pains actually-"

"Yes, it's possible that all of them are dead bodies and if these rods are receivers then they must also be a transmitter."

"Someone is in the shadows broadcasting all of these chakra signals and using it in order to manipulate those bodies." Inoichi finished for her.

"Yes. The coded message that Lord Jiraiya left behind said that the real one's not among them. Perhaps it means that none of the six Pains is the real Pain."

"Hold on, are you saying that there are others still out there?" asked Ino.

"Exactly. _I had anticipated that possibility, but only as the worst case scenario. I didn't want it to be true.'_

"Whoever is out there possesses considerable chakra." Inoichi noted "To control so many, it's similar to our Yamanaka clan's Mind Transfer jutsu but we can only manipulate one person at a time, so if there are six of these Pains then does that mean that there are six others in the shadows?"

"There's no way to know that yet."

"If this is a Mind Transfer jutsu then they would have to be as close as they could to the receivers to receive their chakra, or they couldn't possibly do such a complex jutsu." Ino pointed out.

"They must be hiding somewhere near the Leaf Village then. Alright, we'll tell Lady Tsunade and organize a search party immediately."

"Right."

Then the Human Path suddenly appeared and unleashed a smoke bomb, using it as cover so he could take Shizune hostage "Do not move, or she dies." he then proceeded to use his abilities to read her mind and discover Naruto's current location "Mount Myoboku."

' _What? That's my dad's jutsu, but he just searched her mind in seconds without using any kind of device! Is this one of the powers of the Rinnegan?'_

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Deva received this information as well "Well it would appear that Naruto is not here after all. Mount Myoboku."

Tsunade froze ' _What?'_

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All of the Rinnegan summons disappeared simultaneously, and the Animal Path quickly retreated, much to the surprise of Ibiki and the rest.

They had no idea what was about to happen.

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"Mount Myoboku, the toads' Hidden Village yes?" Deva noted "Then I will linger here no longer."

"How did you know?" one of the ANBU demanded.

"You…" Tsunade growled.

"Lady Tsunade, perhaps we should let them withdraw so we can fortify our defences while they're gone."

"Just one last thing." Deva spoke without turning around "The chakra you are emitting through your feet, is it to counteract my jutsu? So my ability has become known to you has it? However, all is meaningless before overwhelming power. You Great Nations have proven that over the years. You all think of yourselves as the main forces of this world and push death out of your thoughts, lulled by peace you become shallow. If you kill then you shall be killed, hatred is what connects this cause and effect."

"Quit babbling such nonsense." Tsunade growled.

"In battle, both sides suffer death, injury and pain."

"We Great Nations have suffered our share of pain! Enough excuses, you can't justify your actions!"

"...How absurd. Feel pain. Contemplate pain. Accept pain. Know pain." and he flew away.

"Wait Pain, come back! _He's still planning something.'_

"Those who do not know pain will never understand true peace!" he flew higher until he was above the center of the village.

' _What's his plan?'_

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The Human Path then proceeded to rip Shizune's soul out of her body, killing her "There."

"Lady Shizune!" Ino caught Shizune's body as it fell to the ground, only to look up and notice the Human path disappear

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Animal made her way to the forest outside of the village and summoned four of the other paths along with Konan, explaining that the plan was for Deva to use that jutsu.

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Realizing that Pain was planning to do something big, Tsunade had Katsuyu protect everyone from the oncoming onslaught.

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Shima noticed the carnage coming from the Hidden Leaf Village and received a message to summon Naruto and the toads, just as a bright white light engulfed the entire village and everyone in it.

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Now Deva was high above the village, charging his chakra and shutting down all of the other paths for this "I will never forget the pain that Yahiko suffered, and now this world shall know pain. **Almighty Push."** and he unleashed a massively powerful Almighty Push, decimating the entire village and leaving a massive crater in its place.

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The carnage soon subsided.

Ino opened her eyes and froze ' _No… how could… this can't… it's not possible…'_ she fell to her knees, tears streaming down her face ' _Tatsu… Naruto… please… hurry…'_

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Lee arrived on the border of the village just as the carnage subsided and froze ' _The village… there's nothing left but a crater…'_ he looked and saw Deva high above the village ' _That must be him… Pain, the leader of the Akatsuki who killed Master Jiraiya… Naruto still isn't here so I'd better hurry in, and I'll probably have to use_ _ **that**_ _new move that Tatsu helped me create…'_ and he rushed towards the village, gathering chakra and containing it in his body.

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Then there was a sudden cloud of smoke in the crater in the village, and _they_ appeared…


	17. Invasion of Pain: The Counterattack

Deva returned to the ground ' _My power won't be recharged for some time after that. I'll need to be careful.'_

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From within the smoke, the hero had arrived, and he brought backup.

Naruto, now in Sage Mode, looked around "Wait I don't get it, where are we?"

" **Where's the enemy we're supposed to face?"** asked Bunta.

"Pa!" then Shima showed up.

"What's going on Ma?" asked Fukasaku "Why did you summon us to the Hidden Leaf like we asked you to?"

"I'm afraid I did, this _is_ the Hidden Leaf Village." this caused them all to freeze.

" **I don't understand, what the heck are you talking about Granny Shima?"** asked Kichi.

"Just take a close look around."

Naruto looked ahead, and through the smoke he could see the Hokage Monument "There's no way…"

"It's obvious to me who did all this, I sensed the same energies as when we rode atop Jiraiya-boy's shoulders."

' _So it's him…'_ Naruto gripped his fists ' _It's time to end this.'_

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One of the ANBU cleared away the rubble "Lady Tsunade, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine-" then Tsunade froze when she saw the wreckage "Wh-What is all this?" her thoughts flashed to Pain "Damn you, you will pay! This is unforgivable!"

"Yes, it is." then the ANBU noticed something ' _The mark on her forehead is gone, she's already released her Mitotic Regeneration jutsu and given her chakra to Lady Katsuyu to protect the villagers from Pain's jutsu, so now she's powerless.'_

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Mizuki emerged from the protection of one of Katsuyu's clones "Ow…"

"You alright Mizuki?" one ninja knelt down beside him "Talk to me."

"I'm fine…" then he looked down at Iruka's body ' _Iruka…'_

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Ino quickly pulled Danzo out of the rubble "Are you alright?"

"This carnage…" Danzo muttered "It's unforgivable."

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"Konohamaru!" Asuma pulled Konohamaru and Ebisu out of the rubble "Are you alright?"

Konohamaru coughed a little "Yeah, we're fine."

"I see. Good." then he looked at Kakashi's body and hung his head ' _Kakashi… rest in peace my friend, I did the last thing you asked of me.'_

" _Thank you."_

Asuma looked back, but saw nothing, and he stood "Stay here."

"Where are you going?" asked Konohamaru.

"I'm going to end this myself." and he leapt off.

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Shikaku met up with Shikamaru "You okay Shikamaru?"

"Well I'm still alive." Shikamaru pointed out "But I think my leg is broken."

"Then I think you should count yourself lucky if that's all you suffered in that attack."

"Yeah but think about it, they possess a jutsu this powerful but they didn't use it when they first attacked the village. That means that they had a purpose in coming here, and now that they've finally fulfilled that purpose so they changed their approach from gorilla hit and run tactics to an all out offensive on the village as a whole."

"You got an idea of who?"

"I can only think of one thing. The Akatsuki."

"Sounds about right, so that means that their target must be…"

"Yeah, Naruto. I sure wouldn't survive if I relied solely on luck, but I was lucky to survive that."

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Deva stepped forward in front of Naruto and the toads "Good, now I don't have to hunt you down."

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The Naraka Path was quick to use his ability to summon King of Hell and have it repair the Asura Path.

The Animal Path was when launched towards where the Leaf Village once stood, while Konan promptly dissipated her Paper Clone.

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" **Summoning Jutsu!"** Animal summoned the other four paths, and they all landed alongside Deva in the crater.

Then Tsunade appeared in the crater, barely able to stand "I am… the Fifth Hokage… how dare you trample upon the jewel… the dreams of my predecessors… I won't forgive you! I'll settle this now, as the Hokage!"

"It appears you understand a little about pain." Deva noted "However, I have no need of you right now."

Asura shot forward "My business is-"

"WITH ME!" a green blur suddenly appeared out of nowhere and shattered Asura with one sharp kick to the back.

"I've gotta hand it to you Bushy Brow." Naruto suddenly appeared beside him "You're a hell of a lot stronger now than last time I saw you."

"Same to you, I can see you've mastered Sage Mode."

"Yep, but what's your deal?"

Lee touched the white markings around his eyes "Oh these? Three words. Leaf. Dragon. God."

"But that's a gigantic tornado, how'd you get this from that?"

"The Leaf Dragon God involves channeling the energy and projecting it outwards, this is what I've gained by containing it within my body. I call it Dragon God Mode, it increases my physical strength and speed several times over and channels the energy into my physical attacks. _The only problem is that keeping that much power in my body could tear it apart at any moment, how long can I hold out for I wonder?'_

"You never cease to amaze me Bushy Brow."

Tsunade froze when she looked at Naruto, seeing silhouettes of Jiraiya and the Fourth Hokage beside him ' _Naruto…'_

"There's no need for the Hidden Leaf's Hokage to bother herself with the likes of them. You just sit back and sip some tea Granny Tsunade, Bushy Brow and I can handle this."

"So you are Naruto Uzumaki." Deva noted "And that would make you Rock Lee, the one that Kisame warned me about."

"You're damn right we are, now we're gonna settle this here and now!"

' _Deva's power won't be recharged for quite some time, and there's two of them, so in this case that means…'_ Deva arranged the Human, Animal and Preta paths in front of him while Naraka stayed behind.

' _Bushy Brow took one down, so that means there are five left._ Gamakichi!"

Then Kichi came down " **What's up?"**

"I want you to take Granny Tsunade somewhere safe."

"Let me take care of that." then Asuma showed up "I'd like to help you guys but I doubt I'd be much help in something like this. Just be sure to win."

"Right. And Asuma-sensei?"

"Yeah?"

"Keep the rest of the village out of this, Bushy Brow and I will take over from here and we can't be worrying about everyone else, especially not during a fight like this."

"Sure, but here." he took two Katsuyu clones from his vest "Just take these, she'll definitely come in handy. She's got intel on all of the Pains."

Naruto promptly hid Katsuyu in his clothes, with Lee doing the same "And one more thing Asuma-sensei. I probably shouldn't bring this up right now, but now that I've mastered nature energy I have the ability to sense everybody's chakra."

"Really?"

"And I can too." Lee pointed out "When Tatsu gave me access to my chakra back on Mount Koryu, he gave me a little of his sensory abilities."

"Nice."

"So that brings this up." Naruto continued "Are Kakashi-sensei and Iruka-sensei on missions away from the village or something?"

Asuma said nothing.

"I see. Anyway, remember not to let anyone interfere."

"Right. And Naruto? Lee?"

"Yeah?"

"Win." then Asuma took off with Tsunade and Gamakichi.

"We will."

" **Summoning Jutsu!"** Animal summoned a gigantic Rinnegan rhino and sent it charging forward.

"I've gotta say Bushy Brow, you taking that one down with one kick was pretty impressive. So how about this?" Naruto grabbed the rhino by the horn, stopping it with ease, and threw it high into the air.

" **Summoning Jutsu."** Animal summoned a Rinnegan ox and multi-headed dog.

"Geezer Sage."

"Right!" Fukasaku and Shima leapt into the air " **Sage Art: Frog Song!"** they trapped the animals in genjutsu.

Naruto charged in and formed a single clone, who then formed several hand seals " **Wind Style: Vacuum Blast!"** he hit the summoning animals with sharp blasts of wind, sending them into the air "Chief Toad! Gamaken! Gamahiro!"

" **Right!"** the toads charged upwards.

"What's with this one?" Naruto looked at the Preta Path.

"According to Asuma-sensei's intel, this one is capable of absorbing chakra so ninjutsu is useless against him."

"Looks like this is your guy then."

"Looks like. I was gonna use Frog Kumite, but I guess you're up."

"Right." Lee charged in and thrusted a kick.

Preta dodged it, only to gain a deep cut across his cheek and be sent tumbling back until he hit the rubble with a loud thud.

"That's how it's done."

"How'd you pull that one off?" asked Naruto.

"Oh I just subtly channeled wind style chakra into my fist and combined it with the properties of the Leaf Dragon God, it's an attack that he can't absorb because he can't see it coming." he looked up to see the toads finish off the Rinnegan summons "Well that's done."

"And we can't waste any more time. Let me finish this with my new jutsu." he formed a single Shadow Clone.

"I see, so you've become a Sage." Deva finally spoke "Then you've mastered the same jutsu as Jiraiya-sensei."

"Jiraiya… hold on, you called him sensei?"

"That's right. I also learned jutsu from Jiraiya, he was once my master as well. That would make us sibling students, since we share the same sensei we ought to be able to understand each other. Our master desired peace."

"Just shut the hell up already!" Naruto formed a large, blue, spiralling shuriken.

Lee blinked "Hold on, Naruto isn't that-"

"Everything you've done here, all of this destruction, what part of any of that could possibly be peaceful?!"

"You simply cannot see the forest for the trees." Deva retorted calmly "You're not able to comprehend the true meaning of peace or what I'm trying to accomplish. Just allow yourself to be captured, surrender and your death will lead to peace."

"I already told you to shut the hell up! **Sage Art: Water Style: Rasenshuriken!"** he launched a water Rasenshuriken forward ' _Looks like that secret Rasenshuriken training I did back at Mount Myoboku is really paying off.'_

The paths jumped out of the way, with Human stopping to throw Animal out of the way.

' _Now for the finisher!'_ Naruto closed his fist " **Expand!"** the Rasenshuriken expanded even further and exploded, obliterating the Human Path.

" **Summoning Jutsu!"** Animal summoned the gigantic Rinnegan bird.

Naruto leapt over the bird and landed back on the ground beside Lee.

"It appears that Deidara and Kisame were right, these boys clearly do not listen."

Naruto looked back to where where toads were struggling against the multi-headed Rinnegan dog "Sorry Chief Toad!"

"Naruto!" Lee snapped him out of it by dragging him out of the way of the Rinnegan bird, then drew his nunchaku to stop Animal's black receiver "Naruto, snap out of it!"

"Right, sorry."

"You're really beginning to slow down." Deva noted "It seems that your Sage Jutsu is rapidly starting to wane, did you use up your Sage Jutsu chakra with that last move of yours?"

' _Dammit, my Sage Mode is going to run out. Before it does I have to bring down at least one of these guys-'_

"Now!" Shima leapt into the air " **Sage Art: Wind Style: Sand Dust!"** she fired a stream of wind from her mouth, creating a massive dust cloud.

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Next thing Animal knew, she was shrouded in darkness, a mysterious figure attacking her with a rapid barrage of punches and kicks.

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Deva looked around but couldn't see ' _Where are they?'_

"Gamabunta, now!"

" **Right!"** Gamabunta opened his mouth.

Lee's Shadow Clone emerged holding Animal with his nunchaku, and the real one kicked Animal into the air " **Dragon Style: Primary Lotus!"** he slammed Animal into the ground with a Dragon-powered Primary Lotus, creating a mid-sized crater as the markings around his eyes suddenly disappeared ' _Dammit…'_

"Nice work." Naruto appeared next to him, the markings around his eyes having disappeared as well.

"So you've both exhausted your power." Deva noted.

' _Even in Sage Mode, I can only manage 2 Rasenshuriken each. And by the looks of it, Bushy Brow can't hold that power inside of him for any longer than I can maintain Sage Mode.'_

"Finally, here's my chance." Deva charged.

"Bushy Brow, I need you to cover me for a second."

"What are you going to do?" asked Lee.

"I'm out of Sage Mode right now, I can fix that problem but I'm gonna need a minute. Cover me." and he ran off.

Lee stood in front of Deva "You'll be dealing with me for a moment." he ran alongside Deva as he drew his nunchaku to stop the black receivers.

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Naruto prepared to use the scroll on his back to enter Sage Mode ' _I can replenish my Sage Mode two more times, meaning that I can only produce four more Rasenshuriken. I'm a lot better with fire and wind than water.'_ he slammed his hand down " **Reverse Summoning Jutsu!"**

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"Die." Deva thrusted forward a black receiver.

Lee found his nunchaku shattered ' _Dammit!'_

Then Naruto appeared and shattered the receiver using his Sage Mode chakra, then sent Deva flying with a kick "Thanks Bushy Brow, but I'll take over from here."

"Actually, I just finished storing up enough strength." Lee regained the white markings around his eyes "We're on equal ground again."

"Nice."

"But forget that right now, how did you get your Sage Mode back?"

"I prepared a few Shadow Clones before we left Mount Myoboku and I have them building up my Sage Mode chakra, then I just have to summon Mount Myoboku and dispel them, and then I've got instant Sage Mode."

"Only you could come up with something that creative."

"Yeah well bite me." Naruto summoned another Shadow Clone and prepared to fire off his second Rasenshuriken "Since water only got one, fire should get too. Take this! **Sage Art: Fire Style: Rasenshuriken!"** he fired a Rasenshuriken "It's over, you're mine!"

However, that was when Preta suddenly reappeared and absorbed the Rasenshuriken.

"What? No way!"

"Don't forget, that's his ability after all." Lee pointed out "That one can absorb any ninjutsu."

"Yeah but I thought you took care of him, you kicked him square in the face."

"Yeah- Hold on, look over there." Lee pointed to where Naraka stood, the King of Hell having been fully summoned.

"What the hell is that thing?"

"According to Asuma-sensei and Master Jiraiya's intel that Pain is the key player in this battle, the one that has the ability to bring the dead back to life. That's why that one took the back when they all lined up in formation. The Pain on the left is the most dangerous though, he can repel all attacks and pull things toward him."

"Like a magnet."

"Exactly. According to Lady Katsuyu though, he hasn't shown his full power yet. Maybe he can't use it for some reason though."

"Well whatever the case, the first thing we have to do is get rid of that guy at the back." he formed a Rasengan in each hand "Hey Bushy Brow, do you have any smoke bombs on you?"

"A few, why?"

"Use them. Now."

"Alright." Lee threw one to the ground, and from the smoke a Rasenshuriken was hurling towards the Pains.

"It's useless." Preta stepped forward and attempted to absorb the Rasenshuriken.

However, the Rasenshuriken disappeared and Lee appeared in its place "What you tried to absorb was actually a transformation!" he kicked that Pain into the air.

"Tricky bastard."

Then Naruto hurled a Wind Rasenshuriken from within the smoke "There's no time for you to dodge this one, you're through!"

" **Almighty Push."** waiting until the last possible second, Deva's power was finally restored and he dissipated the Rasenshuriken with ease "Well it seems my power has finally returned."

"Maybe, but it's not over yet!"

"That's right!" Lee suddenly blitzed in front of Naraka " **Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** he summoned 5 clones that all kicked him into the air and blitzed through him with a fierce barrage of swift attacks " **Dragon Style: Hidden Lotus!"** the original ended it by slamming him to the ground with a fierce kick, shattering him beyond recognition, and the clones dissipated "That's four down, two to go."

Deva stared at Lee and Naraka ' _Back then, this one had already leapt into the air under the cover of the smoke.'_

"Now Naruto, finish that one!" Lee charged at Deva.

"Right!" Naruto prepared to punch Preta's lights out.

' _Just in time!_ **Almighty Push!"** Pain sent both Naruto and Lee flying and tumbling to the ground.

"Bushy Brow, you doing alright!" Naruto got back up on his feet.

"I'm fine, what about you?" Lee got back to his feet and rejoined Naruto in front of Pain.

"I've been better."

" **Now!"** Gamabunta, Gamaken and Gamahiro all charged at Pain at once, only to miss.

"What was that jutsu he used just now?"

"Looks like his gravity manipulation powers have recharged themselves." Lee noted "I wasn't here when it happened, but if I had to guess then I'd say that was the jutsu that Pain used to destroy the village."

"Anything else?"

"The more power he uses, the longer time period before he can use it again."

"So that's why he couldn't use that repelling jutsu until just now, so what can we do? I can't use ninjutsu or taijutsu on him."

"Well according to Asuma-sensei's intel, our minimum time is about 5 seconds so we'll have to target and strike in that time."

"Only 5 seconds?"

"Then perhaps our best hope is to trap him with genjutsu." Fukasaku suggested.

"But we both suck, we can't pull off genjutsu to save our lives."

"We'll do it for you Naruto-boy, Lee-boy, just like back when Jiraiya-boy fought Pain. It was going to be our means of escape."

"Alright, I'm counting on you guys."

" **We've got you cornered, there's nowhere for you to run!"** Gamabunta and the other toads cornered Deva and prepared to finish it.

However, Deva leapt into the air and held out his hands " **Almighty Push!"** he sent them all flying with one blast, sending them tumbling out of the Leaf's borders.

"Chief Toad!" Naruto looked in the direction they were thrown, then quickly turned his attention back to Deva.

"Naruto." Lee let out a gulp.

"This is gonna be a lot harder from here on out Bushy Brow, I can sense that the one with my awesome hairstyle is the most powerful of them all."

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Ino looked out at the carnage of the battle "What's going on down there?"

"Naruto and Lee are down there fighting Pain at this very moment." Katsuyu told her.

"They're what? All by themselves?"

"Yes, and they've asked that no one interfere in this battle."

"Then I guess all we can do is have faith and trust Naruto and Lee to win this battle and defeat Pain."

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"Chief Toad and the others, they were blown away so easily." Naruto muttered.

"Naruto-boy, Lee-boy, listen." Fukasaku spoke up "This genjutsu that Ma and I are about to cast requires an enormous amount of Sage Jutsu chakra, so it's going to take a little bit of time before the jutsu really gets going."

"Alright, Bushy Brow and I are gonna go for that five second interval so just start the genjutsu when you guys are ready."

"Remember, you only have one Shadow Clone left that can make Sage Jutsu chakra for you Naruto-boy. Once that one is gone you won't be able to use Sage Jutsu chakra since you can't stay still during a battle to build up more and your Sage Mode will only last another 5 minutes."

"I know."

"We've already beaten four of the Pains." Lee pointed out "The only ones left are the one with the gravity manipulation and the one that can absorb jutsu."

"Yeah, I know."

"I must say that you're both truly strong Naruto Uzumaki, Rock Lee." Deva praised "This is the farthest that Pain has ever been pushed. But now more, it's over. **Universal Pull."** he quickly pulled Naruto towards him, allowing the Preta Path to restrain him "We're going to end this right now.

"Naruto!" Lee attempted to rush to Naruto's aid, only to notice while he was running that his markings had disappeared again ' _Dammit!'_

Deva grabbed him and slammed him to the ground, then promptly pinned him to the ground by stabbing his hands with a black receiver, causing him to cry out in pain.

"Bushy Brow!" Naruto found himself unable to break free of the full nelson.

"Don't worry, I won't kill you. After all, you are a precious jinchuuriki."

"Get real, did you really think you could hurt me with this move? Underestimating Sage Mode is a really bad idea, and now it's my turn to-" then he suddenly froze.

"Yes you're right, Sage Mode is indeed troublesome."

' _What's happening? I'm losing power! Wait, I get it. This guy's ability, he's sucking all of the Sage Jutsu chakra right out of me.'_ then he paused in his thoughts, staying as still as he possibly could.

"The Kyuubi has now been captured."

Naruto looked up "Not yet, I'm not done yet."

"You're quite the stubborn one aren't you?"

Then Naruto smirked ' _That's it, not being able to move right now would be just perfect.'_ so he paused, the Sage markings reappearing around his eyes.

"It seems you've accepted your fate."

Then the markings disappeared and Naruto's eyes shot wide open, and Preta began turning into something akin to a frog "I guess you didn't know about this, but nature energy is _really_ hard to control."

Deva's eyes narrowed and he watched as Preta turned completely to stone "What is this?"

' _I force fed the Pain holding me in a full nelson too much Sage Jutsu, and now he's turned into a stone frog.'_ with some strain, Naruto broke free of the hold, but now he was out of Sage Mode chakra.

"Sage Jutsu chakra, seems it comes with his fair share of risks."

"Alright, now we're finally down to just you. _I've just gotta free Bushy Brow and summon my last Shadow Clone.'_

"Well unfortunately, that's not correct."

"What the hell do you mean by that?"

"These pains are only puppets." Lee told him through the pain "According to the data that was gathered by Asuma-sensei and Shizune, there is another that's manipulating this Pain and the others from a distance, from the shadows, the real Pain?"

"The _real_ Pain?"

Then Fukasaku and Shima finished gathering Sage Jutsu chakra "Alright we're ready now, let's do it ma."

" **Universal Pull."** Pain pulled Fukasaku towards him.

"Geezer Sage!" Naruto attempted to stop Pain, to no avail.

"I've had enough of that genjutsu." Pain drew a black receiver and promptly stabbed Fukasaku through the chest, killing him.

"You bastard!" Naruto formed hand seals " **Wind Style: Air Bullets!"** he breathed out several blasts of air.

Pain easily dodged them then threw Fukasaku at Naruto " **Universal Pull."** he pulled Naruto forward and slammed him to the ground, then pinned him to the ground by stabbing him with a black receiver the same way he did to Lee.

"Dammit…" Lee rasped out.

Pain knelt down in front of both of them "So tell me, has this tamed you at least a little Kyuubi?"

"What the hell are you?" Naruto snarled "What do you want? Why the hell are you doing all of this?"

"You ask me why? Sometimes things happen randomly, and the reason only becomes apparent afterwards. These circumstances, well perhaps I can try and explain it to you." he stared hard at both Naruto and Lee for a moment "You asked me why I'm doing all of this, but even if I told you why I doubt very strongly that the knowledge would change anything at all, but let's say I take the time to explain it to you. What do you think would happen then?"

"I have nothing to say to you."

"My goal is to fulfill the dream that even Jiraiya-sensei was unable to achieve. As I said earlier, what I want is to create peace and bring about justice."

"Create peace? Bring about justice?" Lee growled "You can't be serious! Don't think you can fool us for a second!"

"You think I'm trying to fool you?"

"What you're saying is absolute bullshit!" Naruto snarled "You killed my master, you killed both my teachers, you hurt our friends, you destroyed our village! After all of the horrible things that you've done, don't you dare even think you have the right to talk about peace or justice or anything of the sort!"

"Then tell me, what goal do the two of you strive for?"

"First we're gonna kill you, and then me and my team will all bring true peace to the entire shinobi world!"

"...I see, that is indeed noble of you and that would indeed be justice. However, what about my family? My friends? My village? They suffer the same fate as this village at the hands of you Hidden Leaf ninja. How is it fair to only let you Hidden Leaf ninja preach about peace and justice?"

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Once, the Land of Fire and the Hidden Leaf had grown too big. To protect their national interests, they forced feudal clans to wage war against each other, and they even profited from it. Otherwise the people from the villages would have starved. As it happened our little nation and its villages became a battlefield where the Great Nations waged their war, and each time it happened our nation was ravaged and laid to waste. After many such battles the Great Nations stabilized, but our smaller nations suffered and it barely recovered. You and I are both seeking the very same thing, we both want to achieve the peace that Jiraiya-sensei envisioned. You and I are the same, we're both motivated by our desire for peace and justice. The justice that I have delivered against the Leaf Village is no different from what you are trying to do to me. Everyone feels the same pain of losing something dear. You and I have both experienced that pain. You strive for your justice, and I strive for mine. We're both just ordinary men who have been driven to seek vengeance in the name of justice, and if one comes to call vengeance justice then such justice will only bring further vengeance and trigger a vicious cycle of hatred. Right now you live in such a cycle, I know the past and can foretell our future. It is the same as our history, so we believe that human beings simply cannot understand each other and they never will. This shinobi world of ours is ruled by hatred and hatred alone."

Naruto reflected on a conversation with Jiraiya about how the day would come when people would understand each other and live in peace.

"So Naruto, how would you confront this hatred in order to create peace? I want to know what your answer is."

"...I don't know. I don't have an answer."

"But you see? That is why I formed the Akatsuki, to break the cycle of hatred. I can put an end to it, but I need the Kyuubi. I must have his power in order to achieve that goal. I will use the power of all nine Tailed Beasts to create a Tailed Beast weapon many times stronger than the one that flattened this village, strong enough to wipe out an entire nation instantly."

Naruto's head snapped up, the same with Lee "A Tailed Beast weapon?"

"I'm going to show the world what true pain is, and stop all war with the terror that pain will inspire. I shall lead the world down the road to stability and to peace."

"But if you do achieve peace through those means then it isn't true peace!" Lee protested.

"Human beings are not the most intelligent of creatures, this is the only way that peace can be achieved. Of course, after several decades that pain too will naturally fade with time. It will no longer act as a deterrent. Humanity will return to war again. This time they themselves will use the Tailed Beast weapon against one another and reconfirm what true pain is, and then for a time peace will briefly be restored again in the course of this endless cycle of hatred begetting more hatred. This unbearable pain will give rise to momentary peace, that is my dream and my goal. Peace is now within our grasp. You argue that my vision of peace is merely a lie, but in this cursed world a peace where people truly understand each other is nothing but fiction."

"But Pervy Sage believed that one day people would come to truly understand each other and live in harmony!" Naruto protested "You're the one who's wrong!"

"Empty words, you don't even have an answer for how you'd achieve peace." he drew a black receiver "Your only option now is to give me the power of the Kyuubi for my own use, and then after that, as I told you, your death will lead to peace."

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The rest of Team Guy was rushing back towards the Leaf.

"You two, stop!" Neji activated his Byakugan and leapt atop a tree.

Guy followed him, along with Tenten "What's wrong Neji?"

"Take a look." Neji pointed to where Gamabunta lay in front of them "That's Lord Jiraiya's summoning toad."

"What?!"

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Pain stabbed Naruto in the shoulder with another black receiver, having already pierced him with several more throughout his body "There."

Naruto felt his chakra was being disrupted ' _Pain's chakra is getting inside of me.'_

"I've avoided any vital spots and kept them shallow, but you will no longer be able to move on your own."

' _Dammit!'_

"Snap out of it lad!" Shima croaked "No matter what he says to you, you must not listen to any of it! You're the Child of Prophecy, the saviour of this whole world! Jiraiya-boy and Pa risked their lives for you because they believed in you! No you're not allowed to lose Naruto-boy, if you give up now then I won't ever forgive you! You hear me?!"

Pain promptly shut her up with an Almighty Push ' _No amount of divine powers will be able to fix my ears after hearing all of that squawking and croaking.'_

"You bastard!" Naruto snarled.

"Enough talk, it's time we were on our way."

" **Gentle Fist!"**

Pain was forced to retreat back to avoid a blow.

Hinata stared at where Naruto and Lee were bound ' _How cruel, restricting Naruto and Lee's movements with those rods._ I won't let you hurt Naruto anymore!"

Naruto wasn't exactly grateful, he was more pissed "Hinata why did you come out here?! Just run, you can't win!"

"No. I'm just being selfish now."

"And what the hell is that supposed to mean? Hinata don't put yourself in danger like this, just go!"

"I'm here because I want to be, this time I'm going to save you Naruto."

"...As much as I hate to interrupt this sweet moment, you are aware that I'm still here too aren't you?" Lee pointed out.

Hinata just ignored him "I used to be such a crybaby, always giving up before I even got a chance to start. I almost took the wrong path so many times that I lost count, but you helped me find my way and take the correct path Naruto. I always chased after you, wanting to catch up with you, wanting to walk together with you for so long. You've changed who I am Naruto, your smiling face was what saved me Naruto. That's why I'm not afraid to die here if it means I can protect you." she looked back at him and smiled "That's because… I love you, and I always will."

Naruto's jaw dropped ' _Hinata…'_

"So she finally told you?" Lee guessed "It's about time, I haven't been this frustrated waiting for a relationship since Robin and Starfire on Teen Titans."

"Who and who on what?"

"Not important."

"...Hold on a minute, you knew about this?!"

"...Are you really that stupid? Literally EVERY SINGLE PERSON in the entire village knew about this."

"Are you kidding me?!"

Hinata smiled softly at this, then turned back to Pain ' _I will protect Naruto.'_

Pain drew a black receiver from his robe ' _The Byakugan, so this one is a Hyuga.'_

Instead of attacking, Hinata broke one of the black rods binding Naruto.

" **Almighty Push."** Pain stopped her from breaking the other rods by sending her tumbling back with an Almighty Push.

Hinata charged.

Pain sent her flying with a sweep of his hand, then stood between her and Naruto.

' _I can't get close to Naruto like this, but I have to do something. I know, I can still use that technique.'_ she channeled chakra into her hands, forming two blue lions ' _I can't let it end like this, if there's even the slightest chance of reaching him then I have to take it!_ **Gentle Step: Twin Lion Fists!"** she charged in with her new technique.

Pain easily dodged almost all of the strikes, but lost his concentration for a brief second, allowing a blow to connect.

' _Now's my chance!'_ Hinata managed to destroy another black receiver ' _One more time!'_

" **Almighty Push."** Pain sent her flying into the air.

"Hinata!" Naruto cried out.

Hinata hit the ground with a loud thud.

"Hinata! Hinata! Hey! Dammit! HINATA!"

Dreaming of when Naruto once saved her, Hinata slowly regained consciousness when she had heard Naruto calling for her ' _Naruto…'_

"Hinata!"

Slowly, Hinata struggled and climbed back to her feet, and slowly limped forward, only to collapse. But she bravely stood and continued on.

"Just stop, please just stay away."

Hinata just continued on, reflecting on how Naruto supported her during her match with Neji in the Chunin Exams, and how he said that he liked people like her, until she collapsed again. Even as her legs failed her, she bravely crawled forward.

"Why?" Pain finally spoke "Why would someone as weak as you try to resist? Why would you fight me when you know you'll only die?

Hinata gripped the black receiver, feeling the presence within it "Because… I never go back on my word… because that's my nindo… my ninja way…"

"...I see. In that case, I shall allow you to die knowing that you stayed true to your ninja way to the very end." Pain levitated her into the air, then slammed her down to the ground with a loud thud.

Naruto could only stare in horror, with Lee just as bad ' _Hinata…'_

Pain then proceeded to stab her with a black receiver while they watch "It was just like this when my parents were killed right before my eyes by shinobi of the Hidden Leaf."

Naruto was more focused on the blood pouring from Hinata.

"Because of the existence of love, sacrifice is born as well as hate. And one comprehends, one knows pain."

Naruto's eyes turned to red slits, and he was enveloped in dark crimson chakra.

"Do you hate me now?" the only response Pain received was a roar ' _The power of the Kyuubi.'_

Naruto's skin began peeling.

"Rage summons him forth."

Naruto shattered the black receivers restraining him and immediately burst into his four-tailed form, unleashing a small twister.

" **Almighty Push."** Pain nullified it with his Almighty Push.

Naruto looked at Lee and easily slashed off the black receiver restraining him with one sweep of his tail.

Lee stood "Naruto, is that still you under there?"

" **Fraid not kid."**

"Wait, is that you Kurama?"

" **The kid let his anger take over, now the big bad is in charge. Anyway, I'm gonna give you a little boost."** he placed a hand on Lee's shoulder, instantly enveloping him in a Version 1 chakra cloak " **Now hurry up and use the Eight Gates."**

"What? But I can barely control the energy inside me as it is, if I unleash the Eight Gates then it might kill me."

" **This will protect you from that and absorb the damage, now stop whining already and do it!"**

"Well against the Rinnegan, what choice do I have? **Eight Inner Gates: Sixth Gate of Joy: Open!"** he opened the Sixth Gate, unleashing the blue vapor.

" **Unleash your Asakujaku first."**

"Right." Lee blitzed in front of Pain and kicked him into the air, then suddenly blitzed up in front of him " **Fire Style: Asakujaku!"** he hit Pain with a rapid barrage of punches, sending him crashing to the ground.

Pain landed on the ground just in time to avoid an onslaught of debris that Kurama was constantly chucking at him.

Kurama then slugged Pain straight in the face.

Pain rebounded and retreated back atop the rubble summoned by Kurama's attacks.

"Got you!" Lee kicked Pain into the air " **Primary Lotus!"** he slammed Pain into the ground, with only his head sticking up.

For good measure, Kurama slammed him further into the ground by repeatedly slamming a piece of rubble on top of his head.

"Do you hate me now?" Pain just got back up like nothing happened "Do you still think people can ever truly understand each other?"

Naruto's body suddenly transformed further, unleashing six tails and gain a miniature skeleton of Kurama surrounding his body.

"Very well then, as you wish. But know this. My pain, IS STILL FAR GREATER THAN YOURS!" he then destroyed the ground beneath them, unleashing the water hidden below the surface in an attempt to was Naruto and Lee away and enveloping the battlefield in a thick layer of steam "Let's go." he charged across the wet surface.

Kurama-Naruto shot forward several chakra arms.

Pain swiftly blitzed across the surface of the water, easily sliding along the chakra arms.

Naruto shot forward a barrage of Continuous Tailed Beast Balls.

" **Almighty Push."** Pain used his Almighty Push to deflect the oncoming barrage "Is that all you've got?"

" **Wind Style: Dynamic Entry!"** Lee suddenly shot out of the smoke and slammed his foot straight into Pain's face, sending him tumbling back.

Pain stopped himself on top of the watery surface "Not bad." he leapt back and started pushing out Almighty Push blasts from his hands, bringing the rubble down on Naruto and Lee in an attempt to crush them.

Naruto burst out of the top, dragging Lee with him.

Pain fired off a black receiver.

' _Now!'_ flaring the blue vapor surrounding his body, Lee fired a rapid barrage of Asakujaku outwards in an attempt to completely free themselves.

Then Naruto was suddenly bound by blue chakra threads wrapping around his body.

' _What's that? What's going on?'_

Naruto suddenly forced his hand into his chakra enveloped chest and ripped something out, revealing a certain object.

' _Wait, is that… Yes, that's the First Hokage's necklace! I remember reading that the First Hokage was able to subdue Kurama, this necklace must have a sealing jutsu infused with his chakra.'_

Naruto slowly held it out to Lee " **Hurry… take… now…"**

"You want me to take it?"

" **Yes… take… keep safe…"**

"Alright." Lee took the necklace and stuffed it in his pocket ' _So Kurama's influence was too strong for the seal.'_

" **Fight… win…"** Naruto suddenly blitzed out.

' _Alright, time for round 3.'_ Lee followed his movements and blitzed away.

' _Here they come.'_ Pain waited for them to make their move.

Naruto and Lee charged at him from both sides.

' _They're fast!'_ Pain managed to use his bare hands to deflect the chakra arms and fire fists being thrown at him " **Almighty Push!"** he soon found himself overwhelmed, but he managed to repel the attacks with an Almighty Push.

Then Naruto suddenly charged through the water being pushed up by the blast and grabbed Pain by the face.

Pain deflected the arms and kicked Naruto in the face.

Naruto remained unfazed and extended his chakra arm to grab Lee and pull him back forward again.

' _Impossible, he withstood my Almighty Push!'_

" **Wind Style: Dynamic Entry!"** using the wind style chakra to clash against the pull of the Almighty Push, Lee burst forward and kicked Pain straight in the face, sending him tumbling back and slamming into the cliffside head first, only to be crushed by the falling rubble immediately after.

Naruto slowly emerged from the water, pulling Lee back and keeping him behind him with one of his tails as he slowly gathered chakra for a Tailed Beast Ball.

" **Universal Pull!"** Pain shot out of the ground and used his Universal Pull and summoned a gigantic slab of rock to crush Naruto in an attempt to counter the Tailed Beast Ball, the collision resulting in an explosion that shook the entire battlefield.

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From where he and Anko were on a mission away from the village trying to track Kabuto and capture him, Yamato suddenly winced ' _What's this?'_ he looked at his palm ' _What? No, it can't be…'_

"What is it? What's wrong?" asked Anko.

"Don't tell me, he undid the sealing jutsu? 6 tails, that's just insane." Yamato stood "There's an emergency, I'm sorry but I have to get back to the village right away!" and he took off as fast as his legs would carry him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The battle raged on.

Pain burst out of the ground, his headband gone and his robe shredded "The power of the Kyuubi, it's magnificent."

"Naruto!" Lee leapt back to down to join him.

" **Back… away…"** Naruto suddenly sent out a shockwave.

Pain was forcefully pushed back by the shockwave, and once he recovered he began retreating away.

Naruto charged after him.

' _I get it, he's trying to force Pain to move the fight away from the village so nobody would be caught in the crossfire and Hinata could be taken away safely.'_ Lee quickly formed a hand seal and summoned a Shadow Clone "Hurry and take Hinata to Ino so she can be treated, I'll go provide Naruto with backup. This is one fight he can't win alone." and he took off.

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Pain charged through the forest, only to see Naruto running alongside him ' _He caught up with me so easily…'_

"Sorry to keep you waiting." Lee pulled up on the other side.

' _So he's caught up too.'_ Pain continued fleeing, jumping down cliffs, across streams and through a forest until he finally stopped ' _Good, I'm finally close enough.'_ he hid behind a tree and slammed his hands together, then formed a small black sphere and sent it into the air.

Naruto suddenly fired a barrage of chakra blasts as he and Lee appeared before him.

Pain leapt out of the way of the blasts, his hands still clasped firmly together " **Planetary Devastation!"** he began raising debris and rubble out of the ground.

"Naruto wait!" Lee tried to stop Naruto from charging in.

Naruto quickly pushed Lee out of the way before he was caught in a ball of rock and debris.

"Naruto!" Lee found himself in a ball of debris as well, both of them being carried up into a large moon-like ball of rock and earth in the sky ' _Dammit, at this rate I'll have to use the Seventh Gate.'_

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Naruto found himself in front of Kurama in his subconscious ' _Why? How did it ever come to this?'_

" **Stop screwing around you idiot!"** Kurama barked.

Naruto blinked and shook his head a few times to snap out of it "Kurama…"

" **Look, sorry about this but we're gonna have to go for eight tails if we wanna get out of this jutsu.** _ **Only thing is, he'll end up finding out about that fail safe.'**_

"Is that really the only chance? That means I might end up losing control even further and you could break loose."

" **I'll keep myself in check, now stop whining! Your bushy-browed friend out there is about to unleash the Seventh Gate, at this point he's gonna kill himself!"**

"...Fine, eight tails but no more."

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Yamato noticed the 8 symbol appear on his palm ' _Eight tails?! This is bad, this is really really bad!'_

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" **Eight Inner Gates: Seventh Gate of Shock: OPEN!"** despite the tremendous amount of pain he was already feeling, Lee opened the Seventh Gate.

With a furious roar, Naruto burst through the surface of the Planetary Devastation, now almost completely transformed into Kurama " **Bushy Brow…"**

"Naruto… Naruto is that you in there?"

Naruto looked down at him " **I don't know what I look like to you right now, but my mind is perfectly clear. Listen to me, you've gotta let the energy of the Leaf Dragon God out of your body."**

"What? Naruto that's the only reason I've been able to keep up with you and Pain during this battle."

" **I know, but if you keep it in any longer while the Seventh Gate is open then it's going to kill you. Nobody wants that, you've got too much to live for."**

"...Fine." Lee initiated the upward spin kick " **LEAF. DRAGON. GOD!"** with a furious roar and incredible strain, he unleashed the Leaf Dragon God, the tornado dragon destroying at least half of the Planetary Devastation.

Pain marvelled at the power they held "I can't believe they're this strong."

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Naruto was now on his knees clutching his stomach "Okay, now it hurts."

" **Just bear it a little longer, we're almost through this."**

"I know, but the pain…"

"Are you really going to give up like this?" a firm hand clasped Naruto's shoulder "Are you sure you're my son?"

Naruto looked beside him and his eyes nearly bulged out of his head "The Fourth… Hokage?"

"Naruto!"

He looked to see Lee suddenly drop out of the air "Bushy Brow? How the hell are you here?"

"Don't you remember? Tatsu set up that mental link back when we became Team Dragon, but it only works when we're close enough." then he looked at the Fourth "Is that-"

"Yeah. It's the Fourth Hokage."

Sure enough, before them stood the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze stood before them both and smiled "Hi."

"How- When- What?!"

"I worked it into your seal spell so I'd appear in your psyche if it ever happened that the seal unravelled to the point where you had sprouted the eighth tail. Truth be told, I had hoped that it would never get this far, but I'm actually kind of glad it did. I was actually looking forward to seeing the man that my son had now become. You've really grown up, haven't you Naruto?"

"Wait, you called me Naruto. You know who I am? But why? Why in the world does the Fourth Hokage know my name?"

"Simple, I know because I named you. You see, the truth is that you are my son."

Naruto froze "Did you say… your son? Seriously?"

"That's right, like I said before you are my son."

Naruto's jaw dropped slightly, and he managed a small smile, tears falling from his eyes.

"You know, this background kind of clashes with what we're talking about, let's take this somewhere else." Minato snapped his fingers, and then he, Naruto and Lee were surrounded by a white void, void, void.

Naruto wiped the tears from his face.

"Lord Third Hokage never told you anything did he? Well I guess he wanted to suppress as much information about Kurama as he could, if people had found out about my son then you would've been in danger."

"Dad…"

"Yes?"

Naruto then slugged Minato in the gut as hard as he could, tears now freely streaming down his face again "Why the hell would you ever want to seal Kurama inside of your own son?! Do you have any idea what I went through because you did that?! All of the grown ups just looked at me with contempt or with fear, and I couldn't make any friends! I just wanted people to accept me or at least not hate me, so I trained really hard to become as strong as I could! Then I met Tatsu, Iruka-sensei, Kakashi-sensei and Pervy Sage, and I was happy because they all helped make me stronger! But just when things were looking up, a group called the Akatsuki came after me so then I had to train even harder than I did before! I got stronger but I couldn't stop the Akatsuki from killing my friends, and I just- I mean I- I don't even know what I'm saying anymore! Dammit, am I supposed to be happy or mad?! I don't even know!"

Minato stayed silent while Naruto was ranting, and he smiled slightly "Naruto, how old are you now?"

"16…"

"I see, you're 16 already. It must've been hard for you Naruto, I really am sorry, though I suppose that's little consolation if I apologize now after having put you through all of those hardships."

"No, it's fine." Naruto wiped away his tears and looked away "After all, I'm the son of the Fourth Hokage. I'll deal."

"Since you asked, I sealed half of Kurama's chakra inside of you because I truly believed that you could master this power. I did it _because_ you're my son." then he turned serious "There's a reason I went through the trouble to do this, and it's a big one."

"It's because Madara Uchiha attacked the Leaf, right?" Lee guessed "You told Tatsu about it and he mentioned that part to us."

"I see. Actually, you're exactly right about that, uh…"

"Rock Lee."

"Right, you're right about that Lee, and I believe he'll attack again at some point."

"But the entire Leaf Village has already been destroyed." Naruto muttered sourly.

"Yeah I know, I saw from inside your mind."

"Wait hold on, you saw that?"

"Yeah, and I know about Jiraiya-sensei too."

"So is Pain connected to Madara somehow?"

"Yeah. Madara is most likely the mastermind behind the Akatsuki, he's the one who wears that mask."

' _Mask…'_ his mind flashed to Tobi "Wait, you mean _that_ guy?"

"Yeah, and when we fought he saw through every single one of my moves. It was extraordinary, I fought alongside Kuroga Kamikaze, Tatsu's father, and he killed him without so much as batting an eye."

"But Tatsu is insanely strong!"

"His father never did master his Tenseigan to the fullest extent. Anyway, I think that Madara is the one using Pain."

"No way, you're wrong! Pain has a grudge against us! He said that the Hidden Leaf ruined his village a long time ago!"

"That's exactly right, and that hatred is being used."

"He's really being used? Someone as strong as he is? And what about this masked Madara? What's he up to? Why is the Hidden Leaf always a target?"

"As long as a shinobi culture exists, there can never be true peace and order. Pain queried you about peace, but finding the solution is difficult. In order to try to protect something that you hold precious, wars are waged. As long as there is love in this world, there will also be hate, and some will take advantage of that hatred. As long as we have this ninja system, this monster known as hate will live and will give birth to more like Pain. Pain may have actually killed Jiraiya-sensei, but if you looker deeper than one could even say that this disordered shinobi world created Pain and killed Jiraiya. To be a ninja means that you must confront hatred, and every one of us must battle against that hatred. Jiraiya-sensei bequeathed to you the quest for the solution that would end this hatred."

"But how can I when I can't find a way to forgive Pain? There's just no way, I just can't."

"I know."

"Fourth Hokage, please tell me, what should I do?"

"You must find that answer for yourself, because even I don't know it."

"But if you and Pervy Sage don't have a clue about the answer then how am I ever supposed to figure it out? Everyone expects too much of me, I mean look at me! I'm not smart, I'm not a great ninja, I'm just me! And how the hell is a guy like me supposed to-"

Minato cut him off by placing a hand on his head and ruffling his hair "I'm certain that you'll be able to find the answer Naruto, because I believe in you completely."

"...You do? You really think I can?"

"Well the duty of a parent is to have unconditional faith in their children. Now then, I'm afraid that it's time for me to go. My chakra is starting to fade."

"What? No, don't go!"

Minato placed his hand on Naruto's stomach "I will rebuild the seal, but I'm afraid this will be the last time." he quickly rebuilt the seal "The Hidden Leaf can be rebuilt. Naruto, you can do it. I have faith in you." then he turned to Lee "You're Guy's student aren't you?"

"Yes I am." Lee bowed "It is a true honor to meet you."

"Please, the honor is all mine. And please, take care of my son. Good luck you two, I have faith in you." and with that, he finally faded away.

Lee placed a hand on Naruto's shoulder "Come on, let's go. We've still got a battle to win."

Naruto slowly nodded "Right. _Thank you, dad.'_

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Pain watched as Kurama and the Leaf Dragon God squirmed around "They're actually digging themselves out of the Planetary Devastation. What incredible power. I'm going to have to increase its size, and then-"

Then both Kurama and the Leaf Dragon God disappeared in two puffs of smoke.

"The Kyuubi and the Leaf Dragon God, they both just disappeared? How?" then he looked further and saw something.

Naruto stood there, Sage Mode restored "You ready Bushy Brow?"

Lee stood right beside him, now reduced to the Third Gate "Ready as I'll ever be."

' _Their doubt has been erased.'_ Pain realized "What's happened? Has he mastered it? Does he now control the Kyuubi?" then he paused, realizing that Nagato, his original, was losing strength, and now the Planetary Devastation was crumbling."

Naruto returned to the ground, with Lee following "Hey Bushy Brow, how exactly are you holding up right now?"

"Right now I can't go any higher then the Third Gate." Lee told him "What about you?"

"Well that transformation into Kurama disturbed my chakra and it made me lose my last Shadow Clone at Mount Myoboku, so now I can only use the Sage Mode chakra that I have left inside of me, and after that I'm done."

"Well then we'll just have to finish this fast."

"Right."

Pain studied Naruto intently ' _He's already in Sage Mode, he's truly strong. I had to confirm the extent of the power of the Kyuubi, but I never imagined that Planetary Devastation wouldn't stop him.'_ then he looked at Lee ' _And that one's master of the Eight Gates is truly remarkable, I never imagined he'd power up to the point where he could rival eight tails.'_

"Hey Bushy Brow."

"What's up?" asked Lee.

"Over there." Naruto looked over to where the smoke was billowing "That's over where the village is."

"That was thanks to our combined assault on Pain when I used the Sixth Gate and you unleashed six tails."

Naruto froze ' _Hinata! Don't tell me, did I kill Hinata and all the people in the Leaf Village?'_ he paused and managed to sense her ' _She's alive, I can sense Hinata's chakra!'_

"Don't worry, I had a Shadow Clone carry her to safety and nobody aside from Pain was hurt in that assault. We were lucky on that one."

Naruto breathed a long sigh of relief "Oh thank goodness, you don't know what a relief that is to me."

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Hinata lay wounded, only one thing on her mind ' _Naruto…'_

"Lady Hinata!" Neji finally showed up with the rest of Team Guy.

"Her injuries don't appear fatal, but she needs treatment right now." Tenten told her.

"Guys!"

Guy looked to see Asuma approach "Asuma, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine but the village is-"

"I know, Lord Jiraiya's summoning toad told us everything on our way back. Lee was the first to realize that something was wrong and rushed back here ahead of us. I just didn't think things would be this bad."

Asuma knelt down and picked up the body of Fukasaku "I know. Anyway, let's take Hinata and get her over to Ino for treatment right away."

"What are the casualties?"

"Lady Tsunade has fallen into a coma because she used too much chakra. Among the KIA were Shizune and… Kakashi…"

Guy hung his head, appearing crestfallen "I see…"

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"The time has come for us to end this." Pain declared "Do you finally comprehend pain? Unless you come to know the same pain, you cannot truly comprehend someone else, and even if you comprehend it you still may not ever agree with them. That is the truth."

Naruto stepped forward "I've had just about enough of this, I want you to hurry up and take me and Bushy Brow to where the real pain is. I want to talk to him face to face now."

"...So you figured that part out did you?" Pain drew a black receiver "First Jiraiya-sensei and now both of you as well. You Hidden Leaf ninja really are quite impressive, but our discussion is over. Further conversation will change absolutely nothing."

"There's just something I want to discuss with him."

"You're in Sage Mode now, I believe you are limited to generating only two of those bothersome chakra shuriken at a time. Isn't that so? And that causes your Sage Mode to run out."

"I guess there's no other choice but for us to fight you huh?"

"If both of your shuriken should miss then the only possible outcome is that you shall both lose this battle. You have no more chances, I shall take you almost to the point of death and haul you off!" Pain charged forward.

Naruto stepped forward, motioning for Lee to stay behind him "Well that's too bad, I guess I'll have to find the real Pain myself then."

"How exactly do you plan to do that?"

"I've got an idea, just let me take it from here Bushy Brow." Naruto leaned to the side and grabbed Pain's black receiver, then kicked him into a boulder. Then he stabbed himself with the black receiver, allowing him to pinpoint Nagato's location "There, I found him!"

Pain climbed back to his feet, clearly beginning to lose his temper "You bastard!"

Naruto ripped the black receiver out of his shoulder and tossed it away, then summoned a single Shadow Clone as he formed a Rasenshuriken "Bushy Brow, smoke bombs!"

"Smoke bombs!" Lee slammed some smoke bombs into the ground.

Pain readied himself ' _Here comes the first shuriken.'_

" **Sage Art: Fire Style: Rasenshuriken!"** Naruto fired off a crimson Rasenshuriken.

" **Almighty Push!"** Pain used his Almighty Push to nullify the Rasenshuriken, only to see the second one, this time water natured, coming straight at him ' _He already launched the second one using Shadow Shuriken Jutsu?'_

Naruto felt his Sage Mode run out ' _The window is 5 seconds. We can do this!_ Bushy Brow, now!"

"On it!" Lee sent two Shadow Clones towards Pain, one on each side.

' _So that's the plan.'_ Pain stabbed both clones and pushed himself into the air, allowing him to avoid the water Rasenshuriken ' _4 seconds to go… They had already prepared and hidden those two Shadow Clones… only 3 more seconds until I can launch my next jutsu… But two shots both missed. It's over now.'_

Then the rubble around him was engulfed in smoke.

"What is this?"

"It's not over until we say it's over!" Lee suddenly blitzed in front of Pain and kicked him into the air, and two dozen Shadow Clones appeared "We've still got two seconds left, hurry up and go!" they all charged.

' _The rubble, it's all his Shadow Clones!'_

The all cornered Pain.

' _1 more second!'_

" **Supreme Hidden Lotus!"**

" **Almighty Push!"** Pain fired an Almighty Push at the last possible second, dissipating all of the clones and sending Lee tumbling back.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Neji stared down at Hinata's unconscious form "Why on earth would she do something like that?"

Ino was silently healing Hinata's injuries ' _Hinata… so you really are in love with Naruto after all… all this time I thought it was just worship, but I was wrong… I was so so wrong…'_

" **Everyone."** Katsuyu spoke up " **Naruto was able to suppress the Kyuubi."**

Asuma's head snapped up "How?"

" **I can't be certain, but I believe Lee may have had a role in it, and now they're about to go up against the final Pain, 2 on 1."**

"Guy, you thinking what I'm thinking?"

Guy nodded "Yes, we're going to go back up Naruto and Lee. Let's go."

"Right."

" **No wait, please don't."** Katsuyu told them " **You'll both only end up getting in their way if you do."**

"But Pain was an enemy who destroyed the entire Hidden Leaf Village, as strong as Naruto and Lee might be there's no way they can do this alone."

" **Naruto and Lee have a plan that they intend to follow, I think that we should put our faith in them.**

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"Bushy Brow!" Naruto quickly stopped him.

"I'm okay." Lee formed a single Shadow Clone "Get ready."

"Don't worry." Naruto stepped forward, a Rasengan forming in his palm "Ready for our final move?"

"Ready as I'll ever be, now's end this." Lee grabbed Naruto by the shoulders and they leapt into the air.

"Right."

"You with no answers and no solutions, just give up!" Pain roared defiantly ' _He can't throw that jutsu, I've got 5 seconds. This distance will keep me safe.'_

"You give up Pain!" Naruto was launched forward "You can give up-"

' _He threw him?!'_

"-on us EVER GIVING UP! **RASENGAN!"** and with that, Naruto slammed one final Rasengan into Pain's gut, continuously pushing further and further and eventually managing to send Pain flying into a boulder behind him. Then he landed against a boulder behind him and skidded to the ground.

"Naruto!" Lee rushed up to him and helped him to his feet "Are you alright?"

"Yeah."

"It's over. We won."

"No, it's not over yet." Naruto knelt down and pulled one of the black receivers out of Pain's body "These rods were how all of the Pains got their chakra." he then proceeded to pull the rest out of the body, leaving only the nose and ear piercings, and the studs on his bottom lip "There, that's all of them. Now that I've taken them all out, he shouldn't be able to move anymore."

"Naruto! Lee!" a new voice called.

Naruto looked to see Tatsu, Sasuke and Kazuma drop out of the sky "You guys, what are you doing here?"

"We were off on a mission in the Hidden Sand, we felt something off so we rushed back here as fast as we could."

"And I'm suffering from it." Sasuke clutched his heavily bleeding eyes in pain.

"Sorry but look on the bright side, you covered a 3 day trip in just under 6 hours. That has to be some kind of record. Anyway, we couldn't see the battle but we saw that last combo move you guys pulled off. Great job guys, you did awesome."

"Yeah…" Naruto stared at the black receivers.

Kazuma knelt down in front of Pain "What are these?"

"Chakra receivers, they're how Pain gets his chakra from the original. It's actually just a dead body with great hair."

"I see." Kazuma held out a hand over the body, his eyes turning from deep brown to blue with a white pattern, and generated chakra in his hand, causing the black receivers in Pain's face acting as piercings to crumble and scatter into the wind "Now there's absolutely no chance of him generating any more chakra."

"You seem pretty thorough." Naruto then stabbed himself in the hand, seeing Pain's memories, then pulled it out.

"You're going aren't you?" asked Tatsu.

"Yeah. Nobody follow me, I'm going alone."

"The hell you are. We're Team Dragon, we stick together."

"...Fine, but nobody else."

"Kazuma's coming too."

Naruto flipped him off.

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Neji watched anxiously with the rest as Hinata opened her eyes "Lady Hinata!"

Slowly, Hinata looked around "You're all here…"

Ino breathed a sigh of relief "Are you alright?" she helped her sit up.

"Thank you all. Especially you, thank you Ino."

"I'm just glad you're alright."

"Guys!"

Ino looked up to see Zaku, Kin and Izumi drop down from a gigantic hawk "You're all here."

"We heard what happened, are you alright?"

"We're fine, Naruto and Lee are off fighting Pain right now."

"Oh. Well where's Dosu?"

"Right here." Dosu emerged from underneath the rubble "I'm just glad you guys are okay."

"Same to you man."

" **Everyone."** Katsuyu got their attention " **Naruto and Lee have both managed to defeat the final Pain."**

Guy was now crying anime tears "I knew it, I knew my youthful prodigee would never let me down!"

"How are Naruto and Lee doing right now?" asked Asuma "Are they alright?"

" **Well they're both very fatigued, but they should be okay."**

' _Such good knews.'_ Hinata wiped the tears from her eyes ' _I'm so glad, Naruto…'_

"So where are Naruto and Lee now?"

" **They're going by themselves to where the real Pain is."**

"Well we're going after them. Asuma, Neji, Tenten, let's go."

" **Wait, Naruto and Lee said that they don't want any help."**

"What?! They don't?!"

"I don't care, they've both done enough alone!" Neji protested "And besides, they're weakened right now. Lady Katsuyu, please lead us to Naruto."

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"Naruto! Lee!"

Naruto stopped his group and looked back to see Shikaku, Danzo and Inoichi catching up to them "What's up masters?"

"The fact that you're out here, does that mean that you've at last managed to defeat the final Pain?" asked Danzo.

"...It doesn't really matter who won or who lost at this point."

"Tell us, what happened between you and Pain?" asked Shikaku.

"I don't know, it's hard to explain."

"I don't understand, what do you mean by that?" asked Inoichi.

"It's not really important, we're on our way to see the real Pain right now. Please, don't try to follow me. I need to go on alone."

"I'm going with you." Lee said firmly "We fought this battle together, I'm sticking with you until the end."

"Fine, Bushy Brow but nobody else."

"You should take my brother with you." Tatsu told him "He's got abilities with his Tenseigan I could never even dream of."

"Fine, Bushy Brow and Kazuma but nobody else."

"Have you figured out where the real Pain is hiding?" asked Danzo.

"Yeah, when I was still in Sage Mode I pulled one of those black rods from Pain's body and then I traced his chakra."

"Yes I understand that, but why is it so important to go on alone?" asked Inoichi "What's going on with you Naruto?"

"There's something that I want to check out."

"Check something out? And what is that?"

"I want to talk to him, to the real Pain."

"What? You're just talking nonsense now Naruto. Don't get me wrong, we're all grateful that you defeated Pain, but just talk? No, it's too late for that."

"Then tell me, if we go and destroy the real Pain, all his minions, his village and everything else then would that settle things?"

"And what good will talking to him do? Pain is an enemy who destroyed the entire Hidden Leaf Village! We can never forgive him!"

"Yeah I know that, I feel the same way as you do! You think I'd forgive him? I want to crush him for what he did to our village and to everyone!"

"Then why do it?"

"Inoichi, that's enough." Shikaku held out a hand "Let's respect Naruto's wishes and just let him go on ahead alone."

"Shikaku, what are you-"

"Him and Lee are the ones who stopped the other Pains, so I think they have a right to speak to the real one. Besides, I'm sure he's got something special in mind for this meeting."

"Yeah, but-"

"That's enough Inoichi." Danzo finally decided to cut into the conversation "Naruto Uzumaki has the ability to turn his enemies into allies, it's very odd but it's also extremely useful. Perhaps he feels he can do the same with this Pain."

"I don't know if I can, and that's not really my plan." Naruto admitted "But thank you." and he took off, with Lee and Kazuma following him.

"Why did you both agree to let him go without us?" asked Inoichi.

"Because of my son." was the blunt answer Shikaku gave.

"What do you mean?"

"Shikamaru told me that Naruto has a way of convincing others to follow the same path that he does, and I know that he's going to be very important to the Leaf Village one day. Shikamaru rarely praises anyone but he said that to me. There really is something special about Naruto, I believe in him now. That's why we should put our faith in them, particularly Naruto."

"...Alright." then he turned to Tatsu "You, let's walk and talk."

"This is about Ino isn't it?" Tatsu guessed.

"This is about my daughter, yes." Inoichi led Tatsu back towards the village.

"He's screwed isn't he?" Sasuke guessed.

"Oh big time." was all Shikaku said.

 **A/N:**

 **For the record, Dragon God Mode is inspired by Completed Super Saiyan Blue in the Dragon Ball Super manga.**

 **I've been neglecting Lee ever since the Kazekage Rescue Mission, so I thought this would be a good chance to give him some spotlight.**


	18. Invasion of Pain: The Heroes

Naruto paused in a tree, restoring his Sage Mode, then continued on until he found a large paper tree "He's in here."

"You want us to go in with you?" asked Kazuma.

"No, I need to do this on my own." Naruto tore through the paper and made his way inside.

"And there he goes?"

"Do you think he'll be alright?" asked Lee.

"He'll be fine. My little brother has faith in him, so I will too. Besides…" he pulled out a scroll and slammed a hand on it, revealing the Deva Path "Maybe we can do something with this."

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Naruto made his way inside ' _So that's him.'_

Konan quickly stood in front of Nagato "You!"

"Konan, stay out of this." Nagato told her.

"But Nagato-"

"It's alright."

Konan stepped aside, albeit reluctantly.

"Come forward."

Naruto slowly stepped forward "Are you him? Are you the real Pain?"

"So the peace maker comes stumbling in at last. Tell me, do you hate me now? I'm the object of your vendetta, do you wish to exact revenge on me?"

"Killing Nagato and obtaining vengeance isn't going to do a single thing to help change the world." Konan told him "You will only get personal satisfaction."

"If you could not find the answer then there is nothing more that you could do, so do the just thing and simply sacrifice yourself to me and to the peace that I shall soon construct." he fired a black receiver forward and impaled Naruto with it "From this short distance, I'm able to completely manipulate your every move with my chakra. But don't worry, I've avoided your vital spots because you're invaluable to me jinchuuriki."

Naruto looked up, his eyes now red slits combined with the typical markings of Sage Mode, symbolizing a cross between Sage Mode and Kurama's chakra.

Nagato felt himself being enveloped and suffocated by Kurama's Killer Intent.

Konan grew concerned "What's wrong Nagato, what is it?"

' _He deliberately let me…'_

"I can here intending to talk to you." Naruto told him "I also wanted to check something out."

"Check out… what exactly?"

"I wanted to see how I would actually feel if I stood before my enemy. I wondered what I would do, I didn't even know myself."

"...And?"

Naruto slowly gripped the black receiver "And I really can't forgive you! I want to kill you so badly I can't stop shaking!" he pulled the black receiver straight out of his gut.

' _What? He can resist my chakra up close like this?'_

Naruto charged forward with the intent to kill, but as he did images of his time with Jiraiya flashed through his mind, and he stopped "Pervy Sage said that he truly believed that the day would come when everyone would understand one another. To tell you the truth, I wasn't really paying much attention to what he was saying back then. He said that he would pass on his quest to me. I was just excited that he was complimenting me as his student. Thinking back now, I think I finally understand what he was trying to say, that nothing in this world is that simple."

"However, that still doesn't change the fact that you cannot forgive me. Human love is not so worthless that you can sweep it under the rug."

"Yeah, you're right about that, that's for sure."

"Jiraiya-sensei's words reflect an idealism from an era that is long gone, reality is too different. I thought you said that you would take me down and that you would bring peace to this shinobi world."

Naruto's Sage Mode faded, as did Kurama's chakra.

"But those are just more empty words, all you really want is to exact your own personal revenge. If that's your idea of justice then so be it. You're not a God. Now that you see reality for what it is, can you still truly believe in Jiraiya-sensei's ridiculous words and outdated thoughts?"

"When I found out that you guys were students of Pervy Sage too, I thought of something that I had been wanting to ask you."

"And what would that be?"

"How is it possible that you were all his students and still ended up the way that you are right now? I can see that you're not like the rest of those Akatsuki like those guys Deidara or like Kisame, the ones who just seem to enjoy killing for no good reason. But I'll be honest, I really don't know anything about you guys yet. So please, tell me your stories and then I'll give you my final answer."

"...Very well, we will tell you everything about our pain."

"Nagato, it's a waste of time." Konan protested "Just deal with him now."

"Hold on Konan, I want to hear the response he comes up with. Besides, I doubt I could take him down too easily. After all, he and his comrade with the bushy eyebrows crushed the six pains and did make it here all by themselves. Two moments define my greatest pain. The first of these was the death of my parents. The Hidden Rain Village had become caught up in the war between the Great Nations and became a battlefield. My house was invaded by Hidden Leaf ninja, who then proceeded to kill my parents. In the process, I awakened my Rinnegan and slaughtered them both. My parents died all because of the war that the Hidden Leaf started. I have never forgotten the searing pain of that moment. I've endured it to this very day. That pain transformed into hate, but it also brought my powers into bloom. It was only much later that I realized that I was the one who killed those two Leaf ninja. I was forced to wander on my own for quite some time, until Konan saved me. And that's how we met, that's how I was introduced to Konan and also to a boy named Yahiko. They were war orphans just like I was, but they were strong and they were fighting desperately to stay alive. And so, with nowhere else to turn, I joined them. There was no system for helping orphans in that small nation riddled by chaos, and thievery became the only way for us to survive. We had no other choice. But even under such harsh circumstances, Yahiko never abandoned hope. Yahiko always remained optimistic. Then everything changed on that one day."

"What day?"

"The day we saw the leader of the Hidden Rain Village, Hanzo of the Salamander, battling against three Hidden Leaf ninja. It was Jiraiya-sensei and his two teammates that were fighting, the three that would soon become known as the Legendary Sannin of the Leaf. The battle was extremely intense, and in the process, Chibi, the dog that travelled with us, was caught in the crossfire and killed. Yahiko was increasingly frustrated by this and vowed to become a god and make the violence stop. That was when Yahiko's dream became my dream as well. Yahiko knew that to change the world we would need power, so he decided that we would all learn ninjutsu from the Hidden Leaf ninja fighting against Hanzo. Time passed, until fade finally led us right to them. The Leaf's Sannin. We had finally found him. Jiraiya-sensei."

' _Pervy Sage…'_ Naruto gripped his fist.

"However, I was unable to truly accept a Hidden Leaf ninja as a teacher. I'm sure that you know what that's like, don't you?"

Naruto said nothing.

"Orochimaru had once suggested that they kill us, but Jiraiya-sensei agreed to teach us ninjutsu. My parents were killed by ninja from the Hidden Leaf, but I started to realize that Jiraiya-sensei might be different. The four of us began living under the same roof together. Soon after, a certain incident took place."

"What kind of incident?"

"A renegade shinobi from the Hidden Stone attacked us, and when Yahiko was about to be killed that was when I struck out and killed that ninja instead. I did it without even realizing. It seems I had a special power inside of me, the visual jutsu known as the Rinnegan. After that, Jiraiya-sensei was no longer hesitant in training us and began to teach us ninjutsu. He said that he just wanted us to be able to protect ourselves, but in terms of me specifically. I feel he wanted to teach me to control the power of the Rinnegan. But I feared my own power, hate had caused me to go berserk. I didn't know who might get hurt if it happened again. I had convinced myself that what I had done was wrong and became consumed with guilt, but Jiraiya-sensei pulled me from the depths of despair. Before I had realized it, I had accepted sensei. However, it's because one understands pain as much as that that one becomes generous towards others. Experiencing pain helps us to grow up, to mature. And growing up means that one is able to think for oneself and make one's own decisions, to know and to reflect upon pain and then to come up with one's own answer. Jiraiya-sensei seemed to be asking himself the same question, but he hadn't figured out a solution either, just like you haven't been able to provide any answers. Back then, I was able to come up with an answer right away. All I wanted to do was protect them no matter how much pain I would be forced to endure them. After we spent three long years training, both my body and my soul grew stronger, and I felt as if I had matured. But Jiraiya-sensei's words always kept echoing back to me from somewhere deep inside. He told me that he wondered if the solution to bringing peace to the world lay with my Rinnegan. Sensei entrusted me with his quest, conferring his wish for peace on me, and he then left the three of us. We started gathering comrades. With Yahiko as our leader, our organization quickly gained fame. People approved of our philosophy for trying to construct a peace that was minimally based on military might. However, the world was caught up in a war between the three Great Nations. The Hidden Stone, the Hidden Leaf, and the Hidden Sand. Hanzo of the Salamander, the leader of the Hidden Rain, heard rumors of our organization and approached us. He could no longer ignore our existence. He proposed to make us a nexis in the effort to launch peace negotiations between the three Great Nations. Our power would be used to a licid mutual agreement for all of the parties. We decided to accept his proposal. However, that decision would end up leading us only to nothing but misfortune. We were naive children."

"What do you mean misfortune? What happened to you guys after that?" Naruto looked and noticed Konan shedding a single tear.

"What happened is… Yahiko was killed."

Naruto froze "What… What do you mean he was killed?"

"It was all merely a trap that Hanzo had laid for us. He was paranoid that we were going to steal his power over the Hidden Rain, and for that fear, Yahiko… The next day at the rendezvous point where the negotiations were to occur. Hanzo's subordinates and the ANBU Black Ops of the Hidden Leaf. Hanzo had allied with a man from the Hidden Leaf named Danzo to eradicate us. Danzo wanted to usurp the seat of Hokage, while Hanzo wanted to protect his own position of power. Hanzo had taken Konan hostage and gave us an ultimatum. Either I would kill Yahiko or he would kill Konan."

"Excuse me." that was when Kazuma came in, with Lee right behind him "I've been listening from outside this whole time, but I can't stay silent anymore. Between this Yahiko and Konan, there was more than just a friendship and a mutual desire for peace wasn't there?"

"...Yes." Nagato looked at Konan, then back to Naruto and the rest "Nothing was ever specifically said, but…"

"Nagato, don't." Konan pleaded.

"...But he was in love with her, and she felt the same."

"I see. If it's alright with you, would you mind if I stay and listen to the remainder of your story?" asked Kazuma.

"...Very well, do what you please." Nagato then turned back to Naruto and continued telling his story "With no time remaining and no other options, Yahiko took his own life by thrusting himself upon my kunai. With his dying breath, he told me to protect Konan and to continue his quest for peace. In that moment, I went berserk and slaughtered all of Danzo and Hanzo's men and saved Konan, but my legs were crippled in the process, and Hanzo survived and managed to escape, but the damage was done. Yahiko was dead, and from then on I took over as the leader of our organization. I thought that I had grown up, but nothing had changed at all. It was the same as when my parents were killed. I was wrong, I realized then that the answer I had given to Jiraiya was worth absolutely nothing. I owed my life to Yahiko, he gave me my dream. He was an irreplaceable friend for whom I would have given everything. The loss of Yahiko, that was my second great pain. Since that day, countless other comrades have fought and died in battle. So many others, one by one. They kept dying. The citizens of your Land of Fire obsessed with peace, they paid a small commission to the Hidden Leaf, adding to their funding for war, and the citizens of the Land of Fire, knowing full well the truth, still falsely proclaimed peace. But the peace that you large nations enjoy only exists because of the sacrifices forced upon us smaller nations. What all of you like to call peace is only won through violence against us. In order for some to live peacefully, others must die in war. As long as humanity still exists, then hatred will also exist with it. There cannot be true peace, not in a world as cursed as this one. All that Jiraiya-sensei had said about peace is nothing more than wishful thinking!" then he took a deep breath "I've told you my story just as you asked, now let us hear your final answer."

Not giving any sort of verbal reply at first, Naruto instead pulled something out of the back on his back "You may be right. The truth is, I think the same way as you."

"I see."

"But even if I understand you now, that doesn't change how I feel. There's no possible way that I can forgive you. I still hate you."

"Then you want to settle things with me?"

"Yes, I do. But Pervy Sage believed in me and he wanted for me to continue his quest, and for those reasons I choose to believe in him and follow what he taught me." his head snapped up and he looked Nagato straight in the eye "So that's it, that's my answer. That's why I'm not going to kill the two of you."

"...After everything that's happened, you still believe in the teachings of Jiraiya-sensei? Very well then, you've given your answer. And you expect us to wait until you somehow magically transform this world into a peaceful place? No, never! How can I believe in Jiraiya's words after all of this? There will never be such a thing as true peace! Not as long as we're forced to live in this accursed world! Peace is impossible! Impossible!"

Naruto took a moment to contemplate this "Well then I'm going to break that curse one day. If there's truly such a thing as peace in this world, then somehow I will find it. I will never stop looking."

Nagato froze at that "You… but that's…"

"Nagato, what's the matter?" asked Konan.

"Those words… It can't be…"

"That's right, you know them." Naruto held up the book "Every single one of those words is taken right out of this book, the very first novel that Pervy Sage ever wrote. He was seriously trying to change the world with his message, and in the back of it he wrote about his student who helped provide him with inspiration." he opened the back of the book "It was you Nagato, you were that student."

"But…" Nagato reflected on Naruto's words, thinking back on how it inspired the lead character in Jiraiya's novel, the one whom Naruto was named after.

"The name of the hero in this novel, his name is Naruto. Listen to me Nagato, my name is a precious heirloom that has been handed to down to me by my master, and there's no way I'm just going to give up and dishonor the gift from my master. I will become Hokage, and I will bring peace to the Hidden Rain. I will! I'm asking you to believe in me."

"...Why should I? How can you stand there and tell me that you will never change your mind? Do you really think you will never stray from that ideal no matter how much pain befalls you? You think you will always believe in yourself? Can you guarantee it? How can you possibly have that much faith that life will never change you?"

"I felt pain too, you're not the only one." Naruto reflected on his lonely and painful childhood, being hated by the villagers of the Leaf, and gripped his stomach hard "I still have pain buried deep down inside of me, and there's no telling what kind of pain I may face down the road. But if I stop believing just because things get difficult, if the hero in this book were to change who he is, then it would become a whole different story. It sure wouldn't be the story that was left behind by our master, and it wouldn't be about Naruto. The thing is that I can't write books like our master did, and so any sequel has to come from the life I live. That's why it doesn't matter how much pain my path brings, I'm gonna keep walking it to the very end because _that_ is who Naruto is."

Nagato's eyes widened at this, then returned to normal "If the hero ever changes then it will be a different story? We are sibling students who share the same sensei, we ought to be able to understand each other. When I said that to you earlier, I had meant it as a joke. You truly are a curious fellow aren't you? You remind me of myself when I was much younger. I wasn't able to continue believing in the ideas that Jiraiya had expressed to me, nor could I keep believing in myself. But you have given me a vision of a future that shows a different path from the one I've been walking." he pulled his hands free of the machine he was using to transmit chakra to the other paths, and he formed a hand seal "I think I shall believe in you after all, Naruto Uzumaki. I shall use the Gedo Art of Rinne Rebirth."

"Nagato, you can't!" by this point Konan was getting desperate.

"No Konan, it's alright. What I'm going to do is make a new choice. Even though I had all but given up hope."

Now Naruto was getting nervous "What is it? What kind of jutsu are you doing?"

"Those who possess the Rinnegan can perform every single one of the jutsu that the six Pains had used, and are said to exist outside the realm of life and death." Kazuma told him "Nagato's visual prowess itself is the jutsu that resides over life and death, he himself is the Seventh Pain."

" **Gedo-"**

' _But if he performs that jutsu with his chakra reserves as low as they are right now, Nagato will die. He's truly willing to go that far for Naruto. So Tatsu was right, Naruto truly does have the power to change people._ Please wait one moment Nagato, I have one final question to ask of you."

Nagato paused and momentarily stopped building up chakra "What is it?"

"About this Yahiko, if you had the opportunity to bring him back to life then would you?"

"In a heartbeat. However, I currently lack the chakra to do so."

"I think I get it." Naruto stepped forward and placed his hands over Nagato's ' _Just like with Granny Chiyo._ Then use my chakra, take as much as you need to bring him back."

"...Alright." Nagato began molding chakra again, this time using Naruto's as well.

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In the middle of the village, the King of Hell suddenly appeared and opened its mouth, releasing multiple green lights from it.

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Kakashi finished telling his father, Sakumo Hatake, his story "And that's about it."

"Who would've thought that you and I would both die so young." Sakumo muttered "Though not as young as your mother."

"Father, I had always wanted to ask you something. I wanted to know why you, the White Fang of the Leaf, willingly chose to ignore the village code, to abandon a crucial mission in order to save your comrades. You knew that if you let them die then no one in the village would have condemned you. Instead, you were dishonored and committed suicide. It made me so bitter."

"I see, seems you had your fair share of trouble too, huh?"

"Yeah. But you know father, now I realize that you did what you thought was right. You knew what the consequences would be, and you chose the lives of your friends over the code, and I'm proud of you for it."

Sakumo's eyes widened, then softened "Thank you son, that means alot coming from you."

That was when Kakashi suddenly found himself enveloped in a green light.

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Asuma was the first one to notice a light envelop Fukasaku's body "What's with that green light?"

Then, much to the surprise of everyone, Fukasaku sat up like nothing had happened "Where am I? What happened to me Ma?" the only response he got was Shima screaming.

' _But Lord Fukasaku was dead, I'm sure of it.'_ Asuma looked around and saw several other deceased ninja and civilians getting up like nothing happened, Shizune being among them "I don't get it, what's going on?"

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Inoichi stared in shock and awe at what was happening "What is this? What's happening?"

"It appears to me that Naruto and the rest have settled things with Pain." Shikaku noted.

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Nagato's hair had turned white as the jutsu progressed, and gently shook Kazuma's hands off of his "It's working…"

"What are you doing? What just happened?" asked Naruto.

"The Rinne Rebirth Jutsu of the Rinnegan." Kazuma told him "He's sacrificing himself to bring back those he killed during his invasion."

"What? Seriously?"

"The chakra I gave him was just enough to bring back one other too."

"I still have time to revive those I've killed since I've arrived in the Hidden Leaf Village. It's the least that I can do for them…" Nagato murmured.

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Kakashi found himself enveloped in a green light "What's this?"

Sakumo smiled softly "Well my guess is that it was just too soon for you to come here. You must have unfinished business waiting for you back home."

"Father…"

"I'm grateful we had time to talk, and for your forgiveness. At long last, I'm finally free. Now I can finally move on in peace…"

Then Kakashi's soul disappeared, back to the world of the living.

"And finally see your mother."

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Kakashi's eye snapped open "Wha-?"

"Easy Kakashi, we've got you."

Kakashi looked and saw Tatsu and Sasuke supporting him "Tatsu… Sasuke… What happened?"

" **I'll explain everything as clearly as I can."** Katsuyu told him.

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Nagato finally finished, but he was fading fast "It is done."

"Did you just…?" Naruto trailed off.

"War inflicts death, injury and pain on everyone. The truth is that the more precious someone is to us, the harder it is for us to accept that they might die. Sometimes you might actually convince yourself that there's no way that they could die. This naivety can't be helped, especially with a generation like yours, a generation that does not know war. You might try to find meaning in war, but in war there is nothing more than loss and unbearable pain. All of that senseless death, it unleashes a cycle of violence and hatred that never ends. War creates only more war, and those are the things you will face in the coming days Naruto." he managed a small smile "The parallels between you and that book, it almost feels like someone set it all up, like it was all the work of an actual god." the paper tree began scattering to the wind "Seems this is it for me… Naruto… I believe you of all people… truly can…"

"Goodbye, Nagato… and thank you…"

"Where… Where am I…" another voice rasped out, weak from lack of use.

Konan froze ' _That voice… it can't be…'_ she looked down at the Deva Path and dared to speak his name "Yahiko…?"

Slowly, Deva- I mean Yahiko- opened his eyes and looked at Konan "Nothing gets the heart pumping like having a beautiful woman as the first thing you see when you wake up…"

"Yahiko…" Konan immediately embraced him, tears streaming down her face.

"I've been watching everything from the afterlife all this time, and I know how much you guys went through because of my decision back then."

"So you know… about all of the horrible things I've done… I thought you'd be furious with me… I thought you'd hate me…"

"Yeah, I do know. But I was never angry with you Konan." Yahiko slowly returned the hug "I was just sad that you and Nagato both lost your way. But I also know how that blond kid, Naruto I think, helped you find your way again. The way to peace. Then again, I doubt he would've thought of it if it wasn't for that guy." he looked at Kazuma "Thanks, I owe you one."

Kazuma knelt down beside him "No thanks are needed, just let me do one thing." he placed one hand on Yahiko and one on Konan as he activated his Tenseigan " **Kamikaze Style Elder Jutsu: Age Transference!"** green energy flowed from Konan through Kazuma, then to Yahiko, and he stopped "There."

Yahiko sat up "What exactly did you do? I feel different."

"An old jutsu passed down through the Kamikaze clan, you can transfer people's ages. In short, I made Konan here about 7 years younger and you about 7 years older. You're both essentially 23 now. After all, she was almost 15 years older than you before I did it."

"...Oh yeah."

"Now then, I think I'll let Naruto and Lee wrap things up from this point on. I'll go check and see how the village is doing." Kazuma then disappeared in a green flash.

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While carrying Ebisu, Konohamaru saw Mizuki up ahead "Mizuki-sensei!"

"Konohamaru!" Mizuki rushed over, carrying Iruka "You're safe, that's a relief."

"I'm glad you are too sensei."

"Ebisu-sensei, you're not hurt are you?"

Ebisu shook his head "It's nothing to worry about, only because Konohamaru here saved me. But never mind about that right now, what is this strange phenomenon?"

"I know, I've never seen anything like it." then he paused and his head suddenly snapped to the right "Iruka!"

Slowly, Iruka opened his eyes "Mizuki… what happened…?"

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Konan finished wrapping Nagato's body in paper "There, it's done."

"So you're both leaving?" asked Naruto.

Yahiko nodded "Yeah, we've got a lot of work ahead of us."

"I'd hate to think she's going back to the Akatsuki."

"No, I'm leaving the Akatsuki." Konan told him "Along with Yahiko, Nagato meant everything to me. Nagato entrusted his dream to you. You now embody that dream."

"She's right." Yahiko agreed "Nagato chose to put his faith in you, the final student of Jiraiya-sensei. It's only right that I do the same."

"And I will as well."

"And we of the Hidden Rain Village will all continue to pursue our dreams together with you, Naruto Uzumaki."

Naruto breathed a sigh "The name Naruto, the guts to never give up, and now more pain, they're the things that I've inherited from my master and from my sibling student."

"...I see." Konan formed a paper bouquet and held it out to Naruto "This time I wish that you will be the blossom of hope that will never wilt away."

Naruto accepted the bouquet with a proud smile "I will, and I'll be sure to change the Hidden Rain Village too just like I said."

"Until we meet again, our sibling disciple." and with that, Yahiko and Konan departed.

"Come on Bushy Brow, let's go."

"We're heading back to the village?" asked Lee.

"No, there's one more thing I have to do."

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That thing was relatively simple to do.

Naruto had made a simple memorial for Jiraiya in the woods, made of a large stone with the kanji for _teacher_ carved into it, with Jiraiya's novel and the paper bouquet from Konan placed in front of it ' _Just you watch. Master._ Okay Bushy Brow, I'm done."

"You ready?" asked Lee.

"Yeah, let's head back."

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As they made their way back, Lee noticed something off about Naruto "Hey Naruto, are you sure you're alright?"

"Yeah, just a little…" then Naruto fell forward.

Kakashi suddenly appeared and caught Naruto on his back "Good job."

"Kakashi-sensei…"

"Stay still, I'll carry you back."

"Okay…" Naruto rested his head on Kakashi's back.

Then Kakashi turned to Lee "Are you good for a trip?"

Lee let out a scoff "Are you kidding? This is nothing, I have enough energy left to run around the village 100 times over-" then he fell forward.

Then Guy suddenly appeared and caught Lee on his back "You did well."

"Guy-sensei…"

"Your youthful flames have burnt brighter than I ever thought possible." by this point Guy was shedding tears of pride "You've made me proud to be your master."

"Thank you sensei…"

"Come on, let's go." Kakashi continued on.

"Right behind you." Guy followed right behind him.

"They've gotten heavier haven't they?"

"Yeah…"

"Hey, we're not that heavy-" Naruto paused when they got back to the village and he noticed something.

The villagers were all waiting for him and Lee, and cheering.

"Naruto! Lee!"

"Glad you guys both made it back okay!"

"Alright, we knew you guys could do it!"

And so on.

"They've all been waiting for you guys to return." Kakashi gently lowered Naruto off of his back.

Guy did the same with Lee "Naruto, Lee, you both did well."

Naruto and Lee saw everyone joyfully running towards them, and the two shared a look of surprise "What's all this?"

"My brother told us everything that happened between you guys and Pain." Tatsu stepped forward, with Sasuke and the rest of their generation following "Frankly right now, in their eyes you guys are heroes."

Naruto and Lee shared a look, and they just grinned sheepishly.

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"I can't believe they pulled it off all by themselves." Shikamaru muttered.

Choji nodded "Yeah, but they've always been stronger than us. It was never a contest."

Ino smiled softly "You know, I could almost fall for either one of them." then she gently slipped her hand into Tatsu's "Well, if I wasn't already taken that is."

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Kiba smirked "That Naruto and Lee, those guys are something alright. Naruto was my classmate you know."

"But he really outclassed us all." Shino pointed out "Naruto and Sasuke, Tatsu and Lee, they're in a class of their own now."

"Hey just shut up will you Shino? We've just gotta work harder from now on."

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Lee suddenly looked around "Hey, where's Neji?"

"He's off getting a different view point." Tatsu pointed to a hill where many others stood, watching the festivities.

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"Guys, why don't we go down there and join them?" Konohamaru suggested.

Iruka shook his head "I think I'll be fine right here."

"What?"

Neji nodded "I think I enjoy the view here much more as well."

"Yeah but-"

"Don't you worry." Ebisu assured him "Naruto is amazing wouldn't you agree?"

"Lee is as well." Neji pointed out.

"At first Naruto was thought of by everyone as a big nuisance and I was certainly no different, we feared what he might become so we just kept him at arm's length and treated him like nothing but a bother."

"And Lee was never able to use any chakra of any kind, we thought he wouldn't amount to anything so we just shunned him and ridiculed him, and I was certainly no different, as ashamed as I am to admit."

"And yet both were determined, they always followed their hearts and gave every ounce of effort they could, and they stayed true to their ninja ways no matter what sort of challenges they faced. And slowly but surely, we couldn't help but acknowledge them. Naruto has inherited Lord Jiraiya's Will of Fire, and Lee has followed that Will of Fire, and they haven't lost any heart at all."

"And now everyone trusts and respects Naruto and Lee completely, they carry them in their hearts, expect great things of them and wish them both nothing but the best. Naruto has truly changed the hearts and minds of everyone whose lives he's touched, including me, and Lee has inherited that gift."

"It's because they never gave up…" Iruka murmured, and watched as Naruto and Lee were tossed into the air by the villagers, tears of pride now streaming down his face ' _Lord Third… Lord Fourth… right before our eyes… there are two heroes…'_

 **A/N:**

 **Before you guys say anything about bringing Yahiko back to life being an asspull or say he was dead for way too long, let me point out one thing. Madara was dead for decades and yet Obito was able to revive him with the Rinne Rebirth Jutsu, so why couldn't Nagato do the same with Yahiko?**

 **I had to add in that thing about making Yahiko older and Konan younger because they technically would be like 20 years apart in age. This won't appear again for the record.**


	19. Konoha Rebuilds, Iruka Reminisces

As everyone was celebrating, Zetsu, who had been watching the battle from afar, mused over how someone as powerful as Pain could be defeated, and then left in order to inform Tobi about the battle's outcome.

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Once the festivities died down, everyone got to their first order of business: trying to rebuild the village.

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"Such devastation." Iruka muttered "I guess I'll be teaching outside for awhile. Let's see if we can salvage anything, something for the class."

"Hey Iruka, over here!" Tatsu called "Come check this out!"

Iruka made his way over to where Tatsu was calling him "This tree… it survived…"

"Yeah, the same with the mark." Tatsu pointed to a mark on the tree "Remember when this was put in?"

"Yeah."

"You want me to be honest about something?"

"What?"

"You were a real dick back then."

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(Back then)

The Third stared out the window, watching as Naruto graffitied the Hokage Monument "He's incorrigible."

"He's on a sugar high." Tatsu said dryly "I mean come on, if he's gonna pull pranks then they might as well be good pranks. These are just tasteless."

"And they're becoming more and more troublesome each and every day, and every single person in the village is irked by these pranks. That raises the question. Why are you so insistent on being in the same class as Naruto in the academy?"

Tatsu let out a sigh "We're alike, him and I. We're both loners, loners whose parents died when the Kyuubi attacked. We have a connection thanks to that, and I think that that's the first step to bonding with him."

The Third nodded in approval "Excellent, that's very good to hear. You have no idea how much good this will do Naruto."

"I think it's gonna do a lot of good for me too." then he stood "Well I've gotta get going, I'm supposed to meet Hayate-sensei for training. He's finally gonna teach me the Crescent Moon Dance."

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Morning came.

Naruto got up and got ready for the academy "Oh yeah that's right, I almost forgot we're getting some new transfer from another class today. Well you never get a second chance to make a good first impression. I've gotta give this guy the greeting that he deserves."

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Tatsu met up with Sasuke outside of the academy "Hey."

"So you volunteered specifically in the same class as Naruto?" asked Sasuke.

"The Third mentioned that my teacher was having some kind of personal issues so I saw it as a good opportunity."

"Most people would probably think you got the short end of the stick."

"Well frankly I think I got the long end."

"Only you would."

"And yet you still train with me."

"Because it's undeniable that you're by far stronger than anyone in the academy, even stronger than me."

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Later, Tatsu was waiting outside the class until he would be called in ' _The question is, what will Naruto try on me?'_

"Alright, come on in!" Iruka called.

' _Alright, go time.'_ Tatsu opened the door, causing an eraser to fall in front of him, and he found Naruto standing in front of him ' _Well that was fast._ Alright, who?"

Naruto just snickered.

Tatsu looked down ' _Grease on the floor. So the eraser was just a decoy to distract me and get me to let my guard down.'_ he formed a hand seal and stepped onto the grease, and he didn't even flinch "Not bad, not good but not bad."

Naruto could only blink "Huh?"

"Face it blondie, when it comes to pranks you're an ameteur on a sugar high."

"You little-!" now Naruto was foaming at the mouth ' _Of all the things to call me, an ameteur prankster?! This son of a-!'_

"That's enough." Iruka finally cut in, eerily calm "Naruto, just go and take your seat."

"Whatever." Naruto sat down, still grumbling "This place is so boring."

"Okay everyone, we've got a new student joining us today from another class. Tatsu, come up and introduce yourself."

"Alright." Tatsu stepped up and faced the class "My name is Tatsu Kamikaze, I like Ichiraku ramen, swords and a certain book. I dislike slackers who don't take their training seriously and just pick on others to make themselves feel better, and I despise prejudice of any kind. My hobbies are training and reading. I don't really have any goals for the future. And just a warning, you _don't_ want to make an enemy out of me." and he sat down next to Sasuke, much to the fury of the army of fangirls.

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About an hour passed, and Iruka was in the middle of a lecture "Therefore, a person's chakra is greatly influenced by that person's mental energy." then he noticed Naruto sleeping and stormed up, but stopped.

"I've got it." Tatsu knelt down beside Naruto and formed a hand seal "GET UP!"

Naruto looked up, only to see the face of Might Guy, and immediately screamed and fell out of his chair "Hey!"

"You see? Now _that_ is a prank."

Naruto growled, then blinked "Oh hey, sensei isn't it already time for class to be over? Just look, see for yourself."

Iruka looked at the clock "I didn't realize that it was so late. Well then that's everything for today, I'll see you tomorrow." and he walked out of the classroom.

Naruto snickered and went up to the clock, then winded it back to its original time "I knew that sucker would fall for that old trick, that makes prank #3!"

"Just one word of advice for the future." said Tatsu.

"What?"

"When you reveal your prank, wait until the teacher _isn't_ right outside the door." he pointed to where Iruka came back in, looking annoyed.

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Later, Iruka brought everyone outside "Alright everyone, instead of just introducing yourselves I want each of you to demonstrate your skills with ninjutsu. Don't worry, you're not going to be graded on this. It's merely so I can assess where you are on your studies and plan how to proceed with our lesson."

"Like a pretest." Sasuke summarized.

"Exactly. Okay, we'll start off with a basic Clone Jutsu then. First up is Sasuke Uchiha, you wanna give it a shot?"

"Fine by me." Tatsu stepped up "Time to show you clowns what a real ninja is capable of."

Naruto was practically foaming at the mouth "Why do you have to act so smug all the time? I swear, you're just as bad as Sasuke!"

"Do you mind? I'm trying to concentrate." then he turned to Iruka "For the record, I'm not doing the basic Clone Jutsu. I've got something better."

Iruka blinked "Fine by me I guess, go ahead."

"That's the plan." Tatsu formed a certain hand seal " **Shadow Clone Jutsu."** 6 identical copies appeared.

"Solid clones? But that's a jonin level technique, how do you know it?"

"I train with jonin on a daily basis, one of them taught me this."

"I see. Very impressive. I can't even tell which one is the real one."

"That's the idea."

"Oh please!" Naruto burst in front of him "It's totally obvious to me, this one!" he kicked that Tatsu in the head, only for him to disappear in a puff of smoke.

"Wrong."

"Well then this one!" this process repeated itself "This one!" again "This one!" and again "This one!" again "This one!" he destroyed the last clone.

"How did you pick wrong 6 times in a row?" Tatsu, the real one, dropped down from atop one of the trees "I used the smoke from the jutsu as a cover and hid myself in the tree."'

"Amazing." Iruka muttered "6 clones at once while the real one moved away unseen."

"That's the idea."

"So what? I can do Clone Jutsu too!" Naruto formed a hand seal " **Clone Jutsu!"** he summoned a very crappy looking clone, and everyone burst out laughing.

"...Is it dead?"

"Shut up!"

"Man that kid can't do anything right!" Hibachi mocked.

"Shut up!"

"All you're doing is interrupting our lesson." Shino pointed out "You're wasting the time of everyone here and becoming an annoyance." this earned him a dirty look from Hinata.

"What?"

"He's right." Hibachi kept mocking him "But you're not just becoming an annoyance, that's all you've ever been and all you ever will be."

"Shut up!"

"Hey Hibachi that's pretty cruel of you." Unagi pointed out "But sometimes the truth hurts."

"What? Why you-"

"That's enough." Tatsu got in between Naruto and Hibachi "Naruto, a shinobi shouldn't lose control of their emotions like that."

Naruto growled.

"If you go charging in like an angry rhino then you're guaranteed to die out there."

Hibachi smirked "See? Even the new guy gets how worthless you are, but then again if you do die out there then you'd be doing us a favor-"

Tatsu cut him off with a sharp kick to the face, sending him crashing to the ground "Like you have any room to talk, you're the most pathetic one here. At least Naruto tries, all you do is pick on others and you don't even bother to train. If you think you're so much better than Naruto then go ahead and show us, make a clone for us right now."

"Fine, I will." after rubbing his sore jaw, Hibachi formed a hand seal " **Clone Jutsu!"** nothing happened "Uh…"

"See? You're pathetic, you have absolutely no right to belittle others."

"Tatsu, that's enough." Iruka finally intervened.

"I'm only telling the truth, and frankly you have no right to speak. You're just like the rest of the bigots in this village, you look at Naruto like he's the plague when he's done absolutely nothing wrong. What gives you the right to treat him like that?"

Iruka said nothing.

"I'll be back when you're not a prejudiced asshole." Tatsu then hopped over the railing and took off.

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Ayame shot Tatsu an incredulous look "You just ditched class just like that?"

"You know how I feel about people like him." Tatsu told her, his voice having a clear edge "I don't care if he was my brother's teammate, he has no right to treat the kid like that."

"I completely agree."

Tatsu looked to see Mizuki sit down beside him "And here comes another one, well at least I know you're not a prejudiced asshole."

"Look Tatsu we all know that Iruka isn't like that."

"I don't care what he's like, if he keeps treating Naruto like this then I'll hit him with the Thousand Years of Death."

"Just give it time, he'll learn."

"He better."

"He will."

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Next morning, Iruka lined the class up outside "Alright kids, today we're hands on with shuriken jutsu. First, let's have someone demonstrate for us. Let's see…" he tried to ignore Naruto and Kiba barking "Shino, you go ahead."

Shino shook his head, bugs emerging from his coat "Iruka-sensei, I'm afraid you've chosen the wrong person for this. The shuriken jutsu is not something practiced by the Aburame clan, for all forms of warfare we rely specifically on parasitic insects. We house them inside our-"

"Okay Shino, that's enough! Tatsu, will you please just show us the basics."

"Alright." Tatsu stepped up "And word of advice guys, there's a reason acting stuck up makes you popular."

"And what would that reason be exactly?" asked Kiba.

"Simple, women want what they can't have so if you act like you don't want them then it makes them want you." Tatsu held up four shuriken in each hand "And just for fun." he turned around and threw them behind him, each one hitting the target directly in the center.

Iruka nodded in approval "Well done Tatsu, very impressive."

Kiba snorted "Stuck up and a showoff, I can do that too if I wanted too."

"Alright then Kiba, I guess you're up next."

"Fine by me." Kiba stepped up and threw all of the shuriken at once, only one hitting the target and the rest scattering, one of them missing Iruka's head by a few millimeters "...Oops."

"...Next."

"Dibs!" Naruto shot up.

Tatsu walked up and leaned over to Naruto's ear "Don't do what the fleabag just did, keep a clear head and do one at a time."

"What? Why? I can do it in one shot."

"No you can't, don't bite off more than you can chew. Just follow my lead. First, close your eyes."

Naruto did so.

"Now, visualize the target."

"Huh?"

"Picture the target in your head without opening your eyes."

Naruto did so.

"Now throw them one at a time."

Naruto did so.

"Now open your eyes."

Naruto opened his eyes "Alright!"

Iruka looked at the shuriken and wrote down the results "3 out of 6, not bad. Okay, which one of you wants to give it a shot next?"

Naruto followed Tatsu to the back "Hey Tatsu."

"What's up?" Tatsu raised an eyebrow.

"Well, about yesterday… thanks."

"...No problem. Hey, you wanna hit Ichiraku after class? My treat."

"Alright!" Naruto gave a huge shit eating grin "You know I'm actually really in with the people from Ichiraku."

"Same, my brother and the owner's daughter had a thing going on."

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A few more days went by without incident.

Tatsu was walking with Sasuke discussing a certain topic "For the last time no, I can't teach you the Crimson Dragon."

"But why?" Sasuke whined uncharacteristically.

"I've told you before, it's specifically my Kamikaze clan chakra that makes the dragon turn red. Just use your Dragon Flame Jutsu and-"

"What the hell is your problem?!"

"Hold on." Tatsu motioned for Sasuke to get to the side of the road while he himself got closer to see what was going on ' _Oh great, Naruto just had to piss off that guy of all people.'_

That guy was just an angry old man in his 40's that barked at everyone and everything that pissed him off, and Naruto was pretty high on his list "What the hell are you doing here?! You're a curse on all of us you filthy beast! You're nothing but a-" the old prick was cut off when a shuriken hit nicked his ear, cutting a small piece of it clean off.

Next thing anyone knew, an equally pissed off Tatsu was in front of him "The way I see it, the only freak here is someone who'd keep that filthy creature on their lip, and the only curse here is someone like you, someone so desperate for a hobby he'd stoop to picking on a little kid who's done nothing wrong."

"Done nothing wrong?! Listen you little brat, this little freak here is the-" he did the smart thing and cut himself short when he felt metal pressed against his throat, and subtly looked back to see one of Tatsu's Shadow Clones holding a kunai to his neck.

"You know by all rights I could execute you for your little slip of the tongue, but I think it's about time for Ibiki to get a new playmate."

"No please, I'll do anything! Anything!" for once the dumbass was fearing for his life.

"Gee, let me think… take him away!"

"Yes sir!" the Shadow Clone then took the screaming asshole away.

"Goodbye and good riddance." then he went over and helped Naruto to his feet "You alright?"

"Yeah…" Naruto muttered awkwardly, then picked up the mask hurled at him.

"So what were you gonna do with that?"

"Dress up like a demon fox spirit and scare a bunch of pricks."

"...That's so tasteless it hurts."

"So what, you think I shouldn't go through with it?"

"That depends, who are you gonna scare?"

"Hibachi and his friends."

"Oh then I say go for it, that little prick has it coming."

"Finally, someone who gets the art of pranking! Wanna come help?"

"No thanks, I'm meeting someone. Oh, hold on a second." Tatsu turned to the crowd that had watched the scene with the old guy "And consider this a warning, from now on if you pick a fight with this kid then you pick a fight with me, and if that little scene is something to go by then you _don't_ wanna pick a fight with me." and he threw down a smoke bomb and disappeared.

"...How does he do that?"

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Morning came.

Iruka came in and found a pissed off Tatsu waiting for him "Um… good morning."

"Don't give me that you prick!" Tatsu promptly kicked Iruka in the shin.

"You know, I should give you detention for that but knowing you there's probably a good reason."

"Why the f*ck did Naruto show up outside my apartment crying tears of anger at 2:00 in the morning?"

Iruka flinched.

"He said you gave him the stink eye like everyone else in the village and now he refuses to come to the academy."

Iruka flinched even worse that time.

"We're talking about this after class, and be ready to guard your sins." and he went inside.

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Iruka sat on the bench on the roof of the academy ' _What am I gonna do?'_

"Naruto told me everything that happened." Tatsu climbed up and sat down beside him "Now where did you rush off to after class? And be honest, I'll know if you're lying."

"...I went to ask the Third Hokage to relieve me of my duties as Naruto's teacher, but he refused to see me."

"Uh-huh."

"The truth is that I don't have any clue how to deal with that boy, nothing works."

"All you've done is act like an emotionally distant asshole."

"I don't know why the Hokage thought I was the right person for this, I'm just not qualified to teach a kid like Naruto. Hayate-sensei told me something about being a teacher. You cannot open the mind of another if you can't open your own mind, or maybe there's something else you're trying to forget. And don't worry, I already know."

"...The Kyuubi sealed inside Naruto is responsible for the deaths of my parents, I'm fully aware that Naruto isn't to blame for what occurred back then but whenever I look at him I can't stop thinking about what's hiding deep inside of him and about what the Kyuubi did. I don't think someone like me can make Naruto open up."

"Actually I think the Hokage thinks that you're the only person who can reach Naruto's heart, and that's your personal ordeal."

"My ordeal?"

"Yeah. The Hokage has presented you with a personal ordeal, I think that if you can just hang in there a little longer then you can find a way to reach him. Rise up to meet the high expectations set by the Hokage." then he took a breath "Now then, time for me to give a little touch of me. Iruka, look at me."

"Look Tatsu, I-"

Tatsu cut him off with a slap to the face "In case you've forgotten, I lost my parents to the Kyuubi too."

Iruka's comeback died in his throat.

"I'm only a student and I can look past it, you're a full fledged chunin and a teacher so why can't you? Think about that." and he walked away.

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Morning came.

Shikamaru found Tatsu on his way to school "Oh hey."

"What's up?" asked Tatsu.

"Can I ask you something? About Naruto, you seem to know a lot about him."

"More than most do."

"Why does everybody avoid him and treat him like the plague? Did he do something wrong?"

"...Tell me something Shika, how exactly do you feel about Naruto?"

"You wanna know how I feel about him? Well I never really thought about it until my dad asked me the same thing this morning. Well he's not the sharpest knife in the drawer but he's pretty funny, I don't know if we'll ever be buddies or anything but it's not like I wanna avoid him."

"...I see. Anything else?"

"Yeah, Choji and I saw Hibachi pulling one of his pranks on Naruto. He sent him to the back hills to get a souvenir from an enemy corpse, and there still might be enemy ninja out there."

"...We've gotta let Iruka know about this, and hopefully get that little shit Hibachi in some long overdue trouble."

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Iruka looked around the classroom ' _I don't blame him for the first day, but this is one step too far._ Alright guys, has anyone seen Naruto?"

"Nope, haven't seen him." Hibachi lied.

Tatsu stood first, with Shikamaru following "We saw him this morning, he was heading into the back hills."

"Pipe down you guys, what the hell are you doing?"

"Hibachi tricked him into going there to look for enemy corpses."

"Shut up!"

"Why should I? Your pranks are annoying and pathetic, and so are you."

"Stay here and study." Iruka frantically rushed out of the room.

' _I guess Iruka made his decision.'_

Hibachi was quick to round on Tatsu "What the hell is your problem?"

"My problem? What the hell is _your_ problem? You tried to send Naruto off to get himself killed out of pure spite. You're pathetic and frankly, you don't deserve to be a shinobi."

"You son of a-" Hibachi stomped on the desk "Let's settle this outside, right now!"

"Fine by me, it's about time someone knocked you down a couple pegs. Or ten."

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"Kakashi!"

Hearing his name, Kakashi looked up from his book to see Tatsu running towards him, looking serious "Aren't you supposed to be in class right now?"

"Nevermind that right now, we've got more serious issues right now. And for the record, I'm just a Shadow Clone and I've got a free period. Naruto got tricked into going into the back hills to look for enemy corpses, Iruka went after him."

"I see." Kakashi snapped closed his book "You did the right thing by coming to me instead of going by yourself. You didn't go by yourself did you?"

"I'm ballsy not stupid Kakashi, cut me some slack."

"Where's the real you?" note the skepticism in his voice.

"Back at the academy."

Still skeptical.

"Okay fine, the kid who tricked Naruto rounded on me for ratting him out and picked a fight with me, and being me I couldn't back down."

"...Only you." and Kakashi quickly took off for the back hills.

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Tatsu found himself faced off with Hibachi outside the academy, with all of the other students as spectators ' _Just my luck.'_

Hibachi stepped up with a cocky smirk "It's about time someone took you down a peg, you'll regret acting so cool when I'm done with you."

"Just keep thinking that, maybe when I'm done you'll learn not to belittle others just to make yourself feel good."

Shikamaru stepped up, acting as the ref "Ready? Start!"

It was over in less than 10 seconds when Tatsu pinned Hibachi to the ground "You really think you can tangle with someone like me?"

"Shut up!" refusing to accept defeat, Hibachi pulled something out of his bag.

' _A paper bomb.'_

He pulled several more things out.

' _2 dozen paper bombs? Is he nuts? That'll kill both of us and everyone here could get caught in the crossfire.'_

"You'll regret talking down to me!" then he pulled out a lighter and lit the chain of paper bombs.

' _Dammit, there's no time!_ **Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** Tatsu summoned 30 clones to shield himself and the students.

Hibachi leapt back a safe distance once the explosion went off "See? That's why you don't talk down to me! Nobody will talk down to me!"

"Is that so?"

' _Crap.'_ Hibachi looked back.

Kakashi was standing over him, and he looked pissed "Is this how you are? You don't like when people call you out so you try to blow them and the entire class to bits? That's not how a shinobi should act, that's not how a human being should act."

"Don't worry Kakashi." Tatsu quickly put out the flames, revealing both him and the entire class unharmed "We're alright."

"Good, well done Tatsu." then Kakashi looked back at Hibachi "You're coming with me, we're gonna have a little _chat_ with your teacher." and they both disappeared.

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Sarutobi frowned at what he heard "I see."

Tatsu sighed "I know I shouldn't have been so eager to jump into a fight but I didn't think he'd go all Mad Bomber like that."

"Indeed, we should've been more careful with that."

"So what's gonna happen to him now?"

"He tried to kill you and completely disregarded the safety of his classmates, he'll be expelled at the very least."

"I see. By the way, how are Naruto and Iruka doing?"

"They'll be just fine, but I think you'll be interested in what you see."

"What do you mean?"

"Just go see for yourself."

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Tatsu met Naruto and Iruka outside the academy "Hey guys, what's up?"

Naruto was throwing a tantrum "Oh come on sensei, give me a break! How could you have lost that kunai?!"

"YOU IDIOT!" Iruka exploded, taking Naruto by surprise "Are you kidding? You almost lost your life today because of that thing."

"Yeah that's true but…"

"You seem quiet today."

"That's because this is the first time you've ever yelled at me sensei, I'm just surprised."

"Yelled at you? Yeah I guess I did. That's because I decided that I'm going to be more honest and upfront with you from now on, starting tomorrow I'm going to be harder on you than ever."

"Huh? Well if that's how it's gonna be then I'm never going back to the academy." then he looked at Tatsu "Oh hey Tatsu when did you get here?"

"Oh for the love of-" Tatsu let out a sigh "Tell me something Naruto, do you have the Will of Fire in you?"

"The Will of Fire? What the hell is that?"

"It's the strong will to do whatever it takes to protect the Hidden Leaf Village and all the people in it no matter what it takes, if you have it then you can become as strong as the Hokage."

"The Hokage? Is he really as strong as they say?"

"He could kill me just by blinking if he wanted to. But the Hokage has more than just strength, he has the respect and admiration of everyone in the village because he's such a great leader. The Fourth Hokage was a hero who protected us all from the Kyuubi 10 years ago."

"A hero?"

"One of the greatest in history."

"That's it then, I'm gonna be an even stronger Hokage than the Fourth Hokage and then everyone in the village will have to acknowledge how great I am!"

"Alright then, your goal is set. Only one thing left to do now." Tatsu then took out a kunai and marked a certain spot on the tree "I personally guarantee that by the time you're that tall you'll be able to become the Hokage."

"Alright, then I'll work just as hard as I can until that day comes!"

(And that's how it happened)

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Iruka smiled fondly "You're right, I was a dick back then."

"Yeah you were." Tatsu said dryly "So what do you think now?"

"I think he really might become Hokage one day."

"No might or maybe about it, I know for a fact that he _will_ become Hokage."

"You always have, and you've never wavered even for a second. Naruto's come far, Sasuke and Lee too. You had a big hand in their development."

"Get real, everything they've accomplished they did on their own power."

"Don't be so modest, you've had a major role in the growth of almost all of your classmates and comrades. Naruto, Sasuke, Lee, Kiba, Shikamaru, Dosu, Kin, Zaku, Ino. The only ones left are Choji and Shino. Well there's Sakura but-"

"Don't mention her name, not after what she did."

"Speaking of which, do Naruto and Sasuke know? About that certain thing I mean."

"No they don't and I have no intention of telling them unless I have to, especially not after such a huge battle."

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At the same time, the pink haired Akatsuki was making her way to the Leaf Village, unaware of the attack and only one thing on her mind ' _It won't be long now, just a little longer and I will have my revenge on all of those who wronged me.'_ she tightly gripped the scrolls she had hidden in her robe ' _And I'll use those jutsu to carry it out, and those bastards shall regret ever betraying me.'_

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Zetsu was explaining to Madara and Kisame about what happened in the Hidden Leaf and how Pain was defeated by Naruto and Lee " **And that's it."**

"I never imagined Pain would be defeated." Madara noted.

Kisame nodded "This is most unexpected."

" **And Konan isn't coming back here either.** What should we do?" asked Zetsu "So many of our members are gone."

Madara pondered for a moment "We need more pawns to synchronize with the Gedo Statue again. Kisame, you go track down the Eight-Tails."

"What about you?" asked Kisame.

"I have some other business to attend do."

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Yamato stared at the destruction of the Hidden Leaf Village "This is… much much worse than I had imagined."

Then Shikaku came up to him "You're late."

"Did Naruto do all of this?"

"No, it was all Pain's doing."

"What? Pain?"

"Yeah but Naruto and Lee handled him, they defeated Pain all by themselves."

"They did? What about the Kyuubi?"

"Naruto was able to control it all on his own."

Yamato breathed a sigh of relief "Oh that's good news- Wait hold on, Naruto controlled the Kyuubi on his own?!"

"There's no time to worry about that now, right now we have to focus on rebuilding the village. It's gonna be hard work, Yamato we're gonna need all the help you can give us."

"Right."

"Good."

Then an ANBU appeared "Sir."

"What is it?"

"An emergency council has been called, as jonin squad leader you're required to be there Lord Shikaku." then he disappeared.

"Already? Alright then."

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An emergency meeting had been called with the Daimyo of the Land of Fire and his council, now consisting of Danzo, Shikaku, Asuma and Kazuma on the Leaf side, seeing how Koharu and Homura had been stripped of their positions after the truth about Itachi and the Uchiha coup had been revealed.

Danzo got straight down to business "We fully intend to continue pursuing the Akatsuki with assistance from our various allies including the Land of Snow, the Hidden Sand and the Hidden Waterfall. But firstly, our top priority is rebuilding the Hidden Leaf."

"With everything that's happened to your village, those of us from the Land of Fire shall provide full support in your rebuilding efforts." one minister told him.

"You have our thanks. But at the moment, there is a more pressing matter at hand that we must focus on."

Shikaku's eyes narrowed ' _Here it comes, I knew it.'_

Kazuma clasped a hand on Shikaku's shoulder, his eyes saying ' _Don't interfere, it will all work out.'_

"We must choose someone to take over in Tsunade's absence and lead in the village's rebuilding efforts." Danzo told them.

"Would it not be possible for us to simply bide our time until Tsunade recovers?" asked the Daimyo.

Kazuma shook his head and pushed up his glasses "With all due respect my lord, I'm afraid that would be impossible as well as impractical. Lady Hokage is currently in a comatose state, and even with Lady Shizune at her side there is no telling when she will regain consciousness, let alone resume her duties as Hokage. As it currently stands, without someone at the head we cannot steer the village forward."

"I'd really hoped that Jiraiya would follow us as the next Hokage, I liked him very much and it saddens me that he's no longer with us. So who else is up for consideration?"

"Again with all due respect my lord, I don't mean a new Hokage. Lady Tsunade has done a fine job running the village, I merely mean someone who can take over for her until she recovers."

"But you just said you don't know how long it will be until then."

"That is true, but I have faith that she will recover regardless of how long."

"So who do you suggest then?"

Kazuma looked over at Danzo ' _Try anything and I will personally annihilate you._ I believe that Lord Danzo would fill the position well until she recovers."

"Is that so? It makes sense, he was a fellow pupil of the Second Hokage after all alongside the Third Hokage."

"I mean no disrespect to the Third, but he did make a few poor decisions during his reign, the most notable being when he let Orochimaru escape that day. Anyway, I simply feel that Lord Danzo should at least be given a chance, at least for now."

The Daimyo pondered for a minute, before conceding "Very well, I don't see why now. Danzo, I appoint you acting Sixth Hokage. Temporarily, depending on how this turns out."

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Naruto came in with Lee, Tatsu, Kakashi and Sasuke to check on Tsunade "How is she?"

Ino shook her head "She used Lady Katsuyu's jutsu to protect everyone in the village from Pain's attack, and she's been unconscious ever since. We don't know when she will wake up, if she will at all."

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"Hey guys, over here!" Zaku called "Do you think we can still use this timber?"

Dosu nodded "Looks like it, but still…"

"What's wrong?"

"Just look around you Zaku, there's nothing left of what was built by the previous generations of Hokage. Everything's been reduced to rubble, who could've imagined that something like this would happen."

"Yeah but don't forget Dosu, the legacy of the Hokage isn't just the buildings."

"That's right!" Yamato called from down below "All of us are still here after all!" he formed a hand seal " **Wood Style: Row Houses Jutsu!"** he slammed his hand into the ground, causing multiple wooden houses to spring up.

"Alright!" the surrounding shinobi cheered "At this rate the village will be rebuilt in no time at all!"

Yamato on the other hand was left wheezing from exhaustion and lack of chakra "Oh sure, easy for you to say."

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Naruto was still saddened about Tsunade "I just- There are so many things I never got a chance to say to her."

"Don't worry about it too much, I'm sure she'll wake up in no time." Sasuke assured him "She's one of the Sannin for crying out loud, not to mention she embodies the strength of the women of the village."

"That reminds me, how are you working out with Kin?"

Sasuke let out a long sigh "She hasn't spoken a word to me since I came back."

"Oh you're screwed."

"Hey there, super long time no see Naruto, Sasuke."

Naruto looked up to see Tazuna and Inari standing before them ' _No way, is that?'_

"It's so great to see our heroes again, what's up guys?"

"Inari and old man Tazuna?"

Inari grinned "Yep."

"Boy you sure have grown up, and you're even older old man."

Tazuna grunted "Shut it."

"Never. So what are you guys up to?"

"I'm working as a carpenter now." Inari told him "I accepted the Hidden Leaf's commission and here we are to help rebuild. I figure we'd at least say hello to you guys while we're here."

"How long has it been? 2 years? 3 years?"

"More like 4."

"And to think that kid is all grown up."

"And all my old friends are carpenters just like me. They're all working right over there." he pointed to where a bunch of kids his age were working.

"Well isn't that a surprise."

"We're grateful that you helped us that day, with Gato I mean." Tazuna bowed his head and made Inari do the same "Because of you guys the Land of Waves has become very prosperous."

"I noticed." Sasuke told him "I actually went to the Land of Waves awhile back, I heard you were off in the Land of Lightning."

"Now we're gonna return the favor." Inari told them "The first thing we're gonna build is Ichiraku, just you watch and I'll build you an awesome noodle house!"

"Inari…" Naruto gave his classic sheepish grin "Thank you, that'd be great."

"You've really grown Naruto, I think you've grown up to be a super young man."

"Oh go on you really think so?"

"Yeah absolutely."

"Yeah you're right-"

"Oh for crying out loud!" Sasuke comically smacked him on the head "You're such a sucker for compliments, stop fishing for more."

"I'll go along with it 100%." Inari told them "In our land you guys are heroes now."

"Yeah but let's be real, we were just naive little kids back then and I still didn't know my life had been a lie."

"What are you talking about?"

"You know how my brother slaughtered my clan?"

"Yeah."

"Well it turns out that my clan was plotting a coup against the village and by killing those involved he actually became a hero who single handedly prevented the start of the Fourth Great Ninja War."

"Hold on, you're the only one out of your entire clan who didn't know?"

"No most of the older ones knew, the only reason the rest of the clan got wiped out was because of the guy leading the one responsible for this attack."

"Damn."

"How do you think I felt?"

Then Tatsu showed up with Kakashi "Well look who it is, I didn't think you guys would get here so soon."

"Hey there Tatsu, Kakashi, good to see you guys." Tazuna waved "We heard the Hidden Leaf was in trouble so we came as soon as we could."

"I see, well we really appreciate the help. So what were you guys talking about?"

"Just reminiscing about how you guys became heroes in our land. Hey by the way, what happened to Sakura?"

"She abandoned us in a fight with Orochimaru, tried to lie about it, and then got arrested for attempted murder."

"Wow, it's really gone down hill."

"It's alright, Sasuke got a girlfriend out of it." then he looked to where Sasuke was huddled on the ground anime-depressed "They're going through a rough patch."

"I can see that. Well we'd better get to work, see you guys later." and they both went on their way.

"I see the carpenters from the Land of Waves have arrived."

Tatsu looked back to see Danzo and Kazuma approach them "Yep, and apparently the Land of Waves has been prospering well since that mission."

"I see."

"So what brings you two out here?"

Kazuma stepped forward "Sasuke, Naruto, Kakashi, there was something I had neglected to tell you back when I told you guys about Itachi."

"And what would that be?" asked Sasuke skeptically.

"...Shisui Uchiha is still alive."

"...What?!"

"Well you guys seem pretty lively all things considered."

Naruto and the rest looked back, and his eyes bulged out of his head when he saw who was standing there "Yahiko! Konan!"

"Get back Naruto!" Kakashi drew a kunai.

"Calm youself Kakashi, they're not our enemies." Danzo stepped forward.

"I take it you received my prior message?" Yahiko bowed, with Konan following.

"Yes I did, your offer is appreciated and accepted." Danzo returned the gesture "On behalf of the Leaf, you have my thanks."

"Hold on, what's going on?" asked Tatsu.

"Yahiko here wished to make amends for what the Akatsuki, originally his organization, had done to our village, so he's offering the assistance of the Hidden Rain Village in rebuilding the Leaf."

"...Neat." then he turned back to Kazuma "So anyway, about Shisui, spill."

Kazuma sighed "Well it all started about 8 years ago, about 3 months before the Uchiha Massacre…"

 **A/N:**

 **Just to be clear, next chapter will be mostly a flashback about the Land of Snow movie, because that was one of my favorites.**


	20. Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow

Kazuma stared dreamily at the billboard and sighed ' _That was so awesome…'_

"Shisui's late." Itachi noted "That's not like him."

"That movie was so awesome…"

"You're not even listening to me are you?"

"I don't think I've ever been so blown away in my life…"

"I don't want to hear it!" Ayame rounded on him "You made such a racket in there that we didn't get to see the whole thing!" then she let out a sigh "I wish we could've stayed a little longer, I could've watched that handsome Michi playing Sukekura for days on end."

"First of all Ayame, he's just an actor." Itachi pointed out "And second, you were the one yelling in there not Kazuma. You kept going on about Sukekura and Shishimaru."

"...Shut up." her cheeks turned pink.

Kazuma let out a sigh ' _Thank you Itachi, you bail me out always._ I wonder if there's anyone like her out there, I mean what happened to me finding my own Princess Gale? Come on, if I could fight for a girl like that then I'd be on Cloud 9. No, more like Cloud 18."

"There's no such thing as a cloud 18." Itachi pointed out "And again, it was just a movie."

"A guy can dream Itachi, a guy can dream. Still though, I wonder why Shisui told us to watch this movie before he would tell us what our mission was gonna be."

"Well Shisui has always been mysterious like that, there are things even I don't know about him."

"True." then he heard something and looked to see the actress playing Princess Gale riding a horse and jumping over the wall, then running off into the distance "And now I've officially reached Cloud 3." then he suddenly got slammed when the gate opened, and several armored men on horses charged after the princess "And things just got interesting."

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Princess Gale, or rather Yukie, her _actual_ name, rode her horse through town as fast as it was able to go, with the men hot on her trail, until one of the men attempted to capture her and her horse with a large net.

"No you don't!" Kazuma blitzed in with one of his Flying Raijin kunai and severed the net, then summoned several Shadow Clones and subdued some of the men, allowing Yukie to continue running.

"After her, don't let her get away!" several men charged on after Yukia.

"Don't you worry Princess Gale, I can protect you!" Kazuma charged on after Yukia and the men.

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The men were able to knock Yukia off her horse "Get her!" they charged and managed to pin her to the ground "We've finally captured her."

Then Yukie disappeared in a puff of smoke, revealing Ayame in her place "I don't think so."

"Who are you?"

"That's enough of that." Itachi promptly knocked the only guy not in armor off off his horse, sending him to the ground "I'm willing to let you all go, I wouldn't be too sure about her though." he pointed.

Ayame promptly subdued all of them in a manner so horrifying it couldn't possibly be written out "And that takes care of that."

"I always wondered why you were called the Crimson Iris." Itachi commented "And now I can see why." he finished tying up the non-armored guy.

"Oh for crying out loud."

Itachi looked up and saw Shisui above them "Oh Shisui, you're finally here."

"What in the world are you guys doing?"

"Killing time, stopping a potential kidnapping, the usual."

"Oh for the love of-" Shisui quickly blitzed over and cut the restraints, then helped the non-armored guy to his feet "I am so sorry about this. Itachi, Ayame, this gentleman is the client who hired us for this mission."

"...Whoops."

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Yukia sat by a river with her horse ' _Finally, they're gone.'_

"Are you hurt princess?"

' _Oh great, another one.'_ Yukia looked and saw Kazuma standing nearby.

"This is crazy, so you are the real Princess Gale aren't you? This is unbelievable, I just saw your movie less than an hour ago and it was a complete inspiration. It totally blew me out of the water."

Yukie just climbed on her horse.

He didn't seem to notice "It was so awesome, first you had me cheering and then I was crying and now you're about to run me over with your horse-"

Then she ran him over with her horse, sending him into the river, and promptly took off without looking back.

"I mean after seeing your movie I just felt all sorts of feelings welling up inside of me."

Yukie looked back to see Kazuma running alongside her ' _You're kidding me, what's this guy made of?'_ she whipped her horse to make it go faster, leaving Kazuma lagging behind. Or so she thought.

"I'm never gonna give up either." Kazuma then came up beside her on the left side "I've been working my butt off to become as strong as I can and who knows, one day I might even end up becoming the next Hokage."

' _What's this guy made of?'_

"Oh yeah you probably don't know, the Hokage is the highest ranking ninja in the entire Hidden Leaf Village where my team is coming from. I'm not really doing it for me though, it's mainly for my little brother. His name's Tatsu, he's a good kid and he only started the academy a few weeks ago. Hey by the way, you really know how to handle a horse don't you? No wonder you're the number one actress in the entire Land of Fire, and believe me I know talent when I see it."

' _Oh for the love of-'_ she sped up, causing some of her clothing to be torn on random objects as she passed.

Kazuma found himself having to duck and weave to avoid being hit "Hey by the way, aren't you going a little too fast?" then he noticed a bunch of kids up ahead in front of them "Quick, look out!"

' _Crap!'_ Yukia was forced to stop, causing the horse to throw her off.

Kazuma caught her and set her on the ground "There."

' _Well he knows how to treat a woman I guess.'_

The kids were quick to recognize her "It's Princess Gale!"

"Look my name isn't Princess Gale alright?"

"Yeah I know, you're the actress Yukie Fujikaze!" they started hounding her for autographs.

"Just forget it guys, I don't do autographs." they kept on asking, and when Kazuma got involved she finally lost it "That's enough already! I mean come on, what's so special about getting my autograph? You're just gonna shove it in some drawer and forget about it. All it's good for is collecting dust. They're just a waste of time, they're useless. What a joke." and she ran off.

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Shisui let out a long, frustrated sigh "Our mission is to guard Yukie Fujikaze, the actress best known for her role in the Princess Gale movies."

Itachi raised an eyebrow "What do you mean guard her?"

"Maybe guard is the wrong word, more like escort her."

The assistant director sighed "The next Princess Gale movie is the first one that we're shooting abroad, but I guess I don't need to tell you that our leading lady is a bit of a deva."

The client for the mission, Sandayu, bowed "Sorry, I do apologize."

"Let me tell you, these Leaf ninja are impressive though." the director, Makino, commented "I mean they took care of those stuntmen turned bodyguards we hired like it was childsplay, and those are some big fellas."

Shisui gave a sheepish grin "Well thank you, I trained them myself."

Ayame eyed some pictures on the wall "Wow, look at those cliffs."

"That's the Rainbow Glacier, supposedly found in the Land of Snow."

Ayame looked up to see an actor by the name of Kin "Hey you played the part of Buriken."

"That's where we're going to shoot the big climactic ending for the movie." Hidero told her.

"And you're Hidero, you play Shishimaru!"

"The Land of Snow?" asked Itachi "With all due respect, isn't it a long way to go just to shoot a single scene in a movie?"

"Yukie Fujikaze's manager, Sandayu over here, recommended it." the assistant director told the group "Apparently he tells us that this Rainbow Glacier turns seven different colors during the springtime."

"No, that's nothing but an old legend." Shisui spoke up, his tone unusually grim "The truth is that there's no such thing as spring in the Land of Snow."

"What do you mean? As in never?" asked Itachi "So it's winter all year round?"

"Yep, that's right."

"Your name is Shisui right?" Makino spoke up "From what I hear this isn't going to be your first time in the Land of Snow, is that true?"

"...That was a very long time ago, back during the Third Great Ninja War."

"They say that it's a very poor nation too."

Ayame's cheeks turned pink and she looked back to see an actor by the name of Michy standing behind her, and she gained hearts in her eyes "Y-You played Sukeakura, oh Michy you were amazing!"

"Actually the story is that their former lord had a thing for gadgets, they guy squandered everything the clan had on mountains of useless doodads and gizmos."

"Yeah well I just hope they've got central heating." Hidero commented "I'm not really all that cut out for the cold."

"Maybe you should run for the hills too, just like Yukie." Kin teased, much to the dismay of the assistant director who will be referred to as Kai.

"Oh come on you guys, that's not even funny!" Kai whined, only to earn chuckles.

"So does that mean, about Yukia, is she always like this?" asked Ayame.

They shared a look "Kind of yeah. Poor Yukie, she wouldn't even know the meanings of words like dreams or aspirations."

"But she's never been one to neglect her work." Makino pointed out "I don't know anything about her personal life and I don't need to, as long as she's giving her all when the camera is rolling I won't have any complaints. You can say whatever you will, that woman is a born actress."

Kai nodded "He's right, and anyway she only started running from the set after she heard we were going to the Land of Snow."

"Does that having something to do with it?" asked Itachi "I mean, maybe going to the Land of Snow is personal for her."

Shisui let out a long sigh "Much more than you know Itachi, much more than you know."

"You know something about this that we don't, don't you Shisui?"

"I'll tell you when we find Kazuma."

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Yukie was trying to hide in plain sight, covering up so she wouldn't be recognized, only to notice that Kazuma was stalking her ' _Great, why won't he just let up?'_ and she began running.

' _No way she's getting away.'_ Kazuma chased after her.

Running as fast as she could, Yukie thought she had finally managed to lose him when she went into an alley.

That is, before Kazuma appeared in front of her, startling her "Hi." he held out a pen and some paper.

"...You're not gonna let this go until I sign are you?"

"No I am not."

"...Fine, just give me the thing." she snatched it "So what's your name?"

"Kazuma Kamikaze, but it's actually not for me. Make it out to Tatsu Kamikaze."

"Tatsu Kamikaze right?"

"Yeah, he's my little brother."

"Alright." she started writing.

Then Kazuma noticed the necklace she was wearing ' _What's that?'_

Then Yukie suddenly sprayed him.

Kazuma clutched his eyes in pain and fell to the ground "What the heck was that?!"

"Pepper spray, used to keep away stalkers." she then ripped up the paper and threw it on the ground, then walked away "Little fool."

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Yukie stared at her necklace "Give me a break, who the hell would ever want to go to the Land of Snow of all places?" she downed another glass of sake, not noticing a guy staring at her from behind her.

Then Kazuma suddenly showed up "I finally found you Princess Gale." note the venom in his tone when he said it.

"I already told you idiot, I'm not the princess of anything alright?"

"You think I don't know that? What gives you the right to trample over someone's dreams the way you do? I don't care how high and mighty an actress you are, and I don't even care that you pepper sprayed me, but you stomped on the dreams of my little brother and for that I will _never_ forgive you."

"...An actress? High and mighty? That's a riot." she downed more sake "I can't think of a worse job than being an actor, only the lowest of the low would want in in this profession. We're handed lies written down on paper and we've gotta breathe life into them, it's as ridiculous as it gets."

"...How drunk are you?"

"Shut up, go bug someone else!"

That was when Sandayu stumbled in, with Shisui and the rest right behind him "Miss Yukie! Our boat to the Land of Snow is about to sail. Please, we don't have much time."

"No thanks, I'm bowing out as the princess." she was unfazed by the horrified looks she got.

"What on earth are you talking about?!"

"Oh don't worry, it happens all the time okay? I mean lead actresses change from sequel to sequel. Come on, directors change every 5-"

"That's enough!" his tone had more force than any of the Leaf ninja had seen before "You listen to me, there is no one on this whole _planet_ who can play Princess ale other than you! Nobody! Besides, if you pull out this late in the game then you'll never work in this business again! Do you understand me?"

"So? Who cares?"

"Miss Yukie…"

"You heard me."

"Okay, I guess there's no other choice." then Shisui stepped up and activated his Sharingan, putting Yukie under a genjutsu and knocking her unconscious, and he caught her as she collapsed.

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At the same time, that one guy from the bar alerted several shadowy shinobi that Yukie was really a woman by the name of Koyuki Kazahana, and that Shisui Uchiha the Thunder Teleporter was her bodyguard.

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Yukie came to after a vivid dream about her past ' _What a joke…'_

Then Sandayu came in "Miss Yukie, are you awake?"

"Sandayu, could you get me some water? My head won't stop spinning, this is gonna sound crazy but it feels like the room is swaying."

"Actually, it's not all that crazy."

"...What?" Yukie rushed outside, only to find that they were on a boat travelling across the middle of the ocean "You have got to be kidding me!"

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Within an hour, everyone was setting up for filming.

"I don't know guys." Kazuma muttered "I don't think I can deal with someone like her."

"You promised Tatsu you'd get an autograph when you could." Shisui pointed out "Besides she's our client, you have to deal with her. After all, we've all sworn to protect her. This is an important A-rank mission."

"... _This_ is an A-rank mission?"

"Yep."

Itachi didn't see the value of the mission "Is guarding someone so pampered and bitter really worth an A-rank mission? No offense Shisui, but it doesn't seem that worthy of the rank in my opinion. It just doesn't seem that difficult."

"That's not true Itachi, big celebrities are targeted all the time. Besides, it's hard to predict who's targeting them. Just be sure to be on your guard, all of you."

Makino held up his bullhorn "Alright folks, I wanna get this on the first take!"

"Right!" Kai called "Alright! Scene 23, cut 6, take 1, and action!" and they began rolling, so the actors/ actress will be referred to as their movie roles.

Gale furiously shook the body of Shishimaru, lying unconscious before her "Shishimaru! Stay with me!"

"I'm sorry… I failed you princess… forgive me, I beg you…" Shishimaru pleaded.

"How can you say that? Without you at our side, we never would've found the courage we needed to make it this far!"

"I only wish… I'd seen… beyond the rainbow… with you, princess…" then he fell still.

"Shishimaru!"

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"She's amazing." Ayame muttered.

Kazuma nodded "I don't even feel like I'm looking at the same person anymore."

"That's Yukie for you." Sandayu told them "When the camera starts to roll she comes alive, there isn't another actress on earth who can match her brilliance."

Then Yukie held up a hand "Hold on a second guys."

They groaned "What's wrong?!"

"Sandayu, bring me my drops so I can cry."

"Coming!" Sandayu rushed over and put her eyedrops in.

Kazuma and Ayame shared a look ' _Unbelievable.'_

Itachi sighed ' _Maybe I should listen to father and join the ANBU after all, at least then I wouldn't wind up doing missions like this. Then again, at least I'm with Kazuma and the others. I feel like they're the only ones I can be myself around.'_

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Kai was quick to wake Makino up the next morning "Mr Makino, we've got a problem!"

Makino stared in disbelief at the massive ice land glacier before the ship "What is that?"

"When I woke up this morning I found this waiting for me, we can't get through! What are we going to do?"

"...This is it! We're changing everything!"

"Huh?"

"You moron! Look, we're standing on the perfect spot to shoot! It's practically begging us to film here!"

"Huh?!"

"Cherish this moment, for the movie gods are smiling down on us! Everyone prepare to embark!"

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Later, everyone had gotten onto land and started setting up.

"Alright people, we're gonna roll!" Kai called "Okay! Scene 36, cut 22! Action!"

The guy with the evil mullet and staff laughed "So Princess you've arrived, you've done well to make it this far!"

Gale held up her sword "It's you, Mao!"

"Princess, please stay back." Shishimaru warned "We'll take care of him."

"Did you honestly believe these meager fools would be a match for me princess?" he aimed two fingers forward, but looked back when the glacier suddenly exploded partially "I'm confused, is this part of the script?"

Shisui had aimed a blast of thunder at the glacier, his Sanda Sharingan quickly flaring into life "There."

"Hey, what the hell do you think you're doing?" Kai barked.

"Everyone get back, now!"

Then from the ice emerged Nadare Roga "Welcome to the Land of Snow."

"You're…"

Then Fubuki Kakuyoku showed up "Greetings Princess Koyuki, I do hope you're still carrying around the Hex Crystal."

"What?" Shisui's eyes snapped towards Yukie "Princess Koyuki?"

Then Mizore Fukuyama showed up "You're as good as they say Shisui Uchiha, but unfortunately it's not good enough."

"Kazuma, Ayame, Itachi, you guys do whatever it takes to protect Yukie. Everyone else, hurry and get back to the ship!"

"Fubuki, Mizore, I'll leave the princess to you." Nadare charged forward.

Shisui met him in the middle, his hand subconsciously gripping his Raijin sword "You…"

"It's been a long time hasn't it Shisui Uchiha? I hope you're not planning to run, not like last time."

"Nadare Roga, I was hoping I wouldn't have to see your face again." Shisui began dodging and blocking various attacks, then clashed with Nadare as they made their way up the glacier.

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Kazuma took up the front, with Ayame and Itachi at each side "I don't know if this is in the script but I've always wanted to be in the movies. Don't you worry Princess, Kazuma Kamikaze is here to protect you!"

"Is that right?" Mizore charged forward on a snowboard.

Shisui began dodging his lunges.

" **Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** Itachi unleashed a multiplying volley of shuriken.

Mizore blocked the attack with ease "Pathetic!"

' _That armor is durable, this won't be easy.'_

" **Ice Style: Tsubame Blizzard!"** Fubuki fired a barrage of homing ice needles.

" **Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"** Itachi breathed out a fireball, melting the ice "Everyone hurry, get back to the ship."

Everyone ran, but Yukie was frozen in place.

"Miss Yukie!"

"Princess!" Sandayu rushed towards her.

' _Princess?'_

Yukie slowly turned "Sandayu… what are you-?"

" **Ice Prison Jutsu!"** Fubuki launched several waves of ice forward.

" **Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"** Itachi breathed out a fireball.

Yukie watched the battle, recalling her past, then suddenly fell to her knees ' _No…'_

"Princess!" Sandayu knelt down beside her.

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Kazuma found himself dodging attacks from Mizore ' _He's got raw power that's off the charts but his speed is lacking.'_

"Gotcha!" Mizore got through Kazuma's guard and slugged him in the gut.

"Kazuma!" Shisui formed several hand seals " **Thunder Style: Electric Dragon!"** he fired off a dragon made of pure lightning, forcing Mizore to retreat.

Kazuma made a formation with Shisui back to back "Shisui, there's something strange about that armor that they're wearing."

"Yeah I know, just be careful. It's Chakra Armor that was created by the people here in the Land of Snow."

"Chakra Armor?"

"But it's definitely a lot stronger than I remember it being."

"So you do remember it after all don't you?" Nadare appeared in front of him "This armor increases the chakra within the body, strengthening a handful of the more useful jutsu. A chakra barrier gathers around us as well, allowing us to deflect the chakra of our adversaries. As a result, ninjutsu and genjutsu are rendered useless."

' _Damn, it's times like this that I wish Guy was here. His taijutsu would flatten guys like this in an instant.'_

Nadare formed several hand seals " **Ice Style: Dragon vs Tiger!"**

" **Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!"** Shisui unleashed a water dragon, only for it to be frozen by the ice.

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"Gotcha!" Mizore took this opportunity to tie up Yukie.

"No you don't!" Ayame cut the restraints.

"Move out of the way little girl!"

"Ayame!" Kazuma blitzed in and kicked Mizore in the face, knocking him off his board "I'll die before I let you hurt her."

"You little brat!" Mizore caught Kazuma in a power struggle ' _What is this chakra?! His eyes are different too!'_

Kazuma activated his Tenseigan, his eyes now blue with white irades "Like I said, I'll die before I let you hurt her."

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Itachi found himself caught in the ice, but he managed to escape before he was frozen by substituting with a paper bomb and bound Fubuki to the ice " **Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"** he breathed out a fire dragon.

' _Dammit!'_ Fubuki escaped at the last second before she was burned using a set of wings attached to her armor.

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Ayame looked back "Yukie, hurry and get to the ship already while we hold them off!"

Yukie was frozen in place, recalling her past, her father, and fire ' _Father….'_

"Princess please, we must get to the ship." Sandayu pleaded.

"No…"

"You have to go now, your life is-"

"I don't care if I die! I won't go back to the Land of Snow!"

"We don't have time for this right now!" Kazuma found himself struggling even more.

"Enough of this!" Mizore threw him aside and fired his retractable cable arm, grabbing Ayame and slamming her to the ground.

"Ayame!"

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Shisui noticed Kazuma and the rest struggling ' _Dammit!'_

"Don't be in such a hurry, we're not finished yet!" Nadare formed a hand seal " **Ice Style: White Whale Jutsu!"** he unleashed a whale made of ice.

Shisui managed to dodge it "Okay I'll admit, that was pretty impressive. Now then, I think it's my turn to show off. Kazuma, hurry and get everyone out of here!"

"Right!" Kazuma rushed off.

" **Ice Style: White Whale Jutsu!"** Shisui unleashed his own white whale, having copied the jutsu with his Sharingan.

"Still copying my moves are you? You're not going to settle this fight doing something as trivial as that." Nadare unleashed another white whale.

"Settle the fight? Sorry to disappoint you, but that's not really what I was aiming for at the moment." Shisui had his white whale counter Nadare's allowing the ship to escape "Well then, looks like my work here is done." and he disappeared using the Teleportation Jutsu.

"Dammit. _Shisui Uchiha, you sly bastard.'_

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Shisui stood by Yukie's bedside as she slept, staring at the Hex Crystal ' _To think 10 years have already passed since then, it's been a long time hasn't it?'_

Then Sandayu came in "The ship pulled into dock a moment ago."

"...Alright." Shisui left the necklace.

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Shisui gathered Kazuma, Itachi and Ayame in one of the rooms along with Sandayu and the main members of the filming crew "You've known all along Sandayu, haven't you?  
Sandayu nodded solemnly "Yes, I have."

"Didn't you ever consider the risks of what might happen if she ever came back to the Land of Snow?"

"You're right of course, but this was the only way I could think to get the princess to return home."

"Maybe so, but…"

"Mr Sandayu, you really don't have to keep calling her that." Kazuma told him "After all, she's only royalty on the big screen right? It's not like she's an actual princess in real life."

"Actually Kazuma, yes she is. You see, Yukie Fujikaze is nothing more than an alias she uses. The true name of our client that we're guarding is princess Koyuki Kazahana, the rightful heir to the throne of the Land of Snow." he received jaw dropped looks from Kazuma and Ayame, and a raised eyebrow from Itachi.

"I first met her a long time ago." Sandayu told them "I was her aid when she was still just a little girl. It was years ago so I don't blame her for not remembering."

"So does that mean you're from the Land of Snow too Sandayu?" asked Ayame.

"Yes that's right, I served the princess's father, the former leader of the clan, Lord Sosetsu Kazahana. The Land of Snow was not a large nation was not a large nation, but it still served as a haven of peace. Lord Sosetsu absolutely adored the princess, those were truly idyllic times. But 10 years ago, on that cursed horrible day, Lord Sosetsu's younger brother Doto hired a group of Snow ninja and instigated a revolt. It was a coup d'etat. The magnificent Kazahana Castle burned to the ground, and I had feared that the princess had perished as well."

"This was where I came into the picture." Shisui cut in "I had only just awakened my Sharingan and was sent to bring her to safety. There was no way I could defeat them, at that point I could do little more than run. I've lived with the guilt and shame of that day ever since."

"The day I discovered that our beloved princess was still alive, I was practically beside myself with joy." Sandayu began shedding tears "She was alive after all those years…"

"I should've died back then."

Sandayu and the others looked to see Yukie, now Koyuki, standing in the doorway "You mustn't say such things princess, we feared the worst. You can't imagine how frantic we all were, we never stopped praying for your life."

"I may be alive, but my heart is dead. After that day, any tears I had left all dried up."

Sandayu wiped away his tears and finished telling Kazuma and the rest his tale "And that's how I came to be the manager for Yukie Fujikaze, I had bided my time waiting for the day when I could escort her back to the Land of Snow."

"So what are you saying?" asked Kai "All this time you've just been using us?"

"I must apologize for deceiving all of you, but it was for the sake of the people of the Land of Snow." he went over to Koyuki and got on his hands and knees "Princess Koyuki, please confront Doto and assume your rightful place as the leader of our land! I will sacrifice my life without hesitation in order to protect you! I beg you, take up arms and lead your people!"

"...I don't think so. You can't be serious."

"But what about your people?"

"I could care less about them, just forget it."

"But princess-"

"Will you give up already? Don't be such an idiot. It doesn't matter what you do, you'll never be able to get rid of Doto okay?"

Kazuma finally bolted out of his seat and slammed his hand against the table "What are you saying then, that he should just give up? What gives you the right to act so heartless? Are you so blind that you can't see that this poor man has given up his entire life solely to the realization of his dream? Go ahead and keep insulting him like that, then you'll be dealing with me."

Sandayu stared at Kazuma in awe "Kazuma, I…"

"As long as there is hope one may dream, and with those dreams the future comes." Makino got their attention and gave a huge grin "I like it, it's the perfect theme for our new Princess Gale movie."

"But Mr Makino, you're not really going to continue filming the movie with everything that's happened are you?" Kai sounded incredulous.

"It's like I told you, the movie is evolving."

"Huh?!"

"Just think about it, how often do you get the chance to make a movie with a real princess as the leading lady? We're looking at the chance of a lifetime here."

"...You're right, just think of the buzz. Even the making-of will be a hit! We're sitting on a surefire blockbuster!"

Koyuki was offended "Hey, I'm not some piece of meat to use!"

"Unfortunately, I can only see one course of action." Itachi spoke up "Now that Doto knows about the princess and he's on our trail, running is no longer an option. We have to fight, it's our only chance of getting through this with our lives."

Kazuma had a huge shit eating grin "Alright, time to continue the mission! The princess returns to the Land of Snow and shows that creep who's boss!"

"I still don't see what's so appealing."

"Oh come on Itachi-"

"Stop joking around!" Koyuki finally lost her temper "The movies aren't like real life, there is no such thing as a happy ending in this world!"

"Of course there is if you're willing to fight for it!" Makino barked, catching her by surprise.

"Shisui, you're the team leader for this mission." Itachi pointed out "What do you think we should do?"

Shisui sighed "Normally the best plan would be to head back to the Hidden Leaf Village to request some backup, but-"

"It wouldn't really do any good, we can handle this ourselves."

"Exactly."

Sandayu bowed his head "I honestly can't thank all of you enough."

"That's it then, we're going ahead with this picture." Makino decided.

Kai nodded "And you can bet that this one will have a happy ending!"

"You've got that right!"

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Soon enough, they had hit land and were on the move, stopping in front of a dark mountainside cave along the path.

"Our hideout isn't far from here." Sandayu told the group "It's just beyond this cave, once we finish our shooting here we can pass through to the other side. Then my people can rest easier, they will finally have their princess back."

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Once they were passing through, Kazuma looked around "I can't see the exit at all, even with my Tenseigan."

"Once upon a time, a railroad ran through here." Sandayu told them.

"Railroad?"

"It's covered over with pillars of ice by now, but if you dig far enough down then you'll find the tracks still lying there."

"Interesting." he looked out and saw the crews stopping just outside the cave "Check it out, we're outside again."

Makino burst out the door "Alright people, let's get this show on the road!"

"Mr Makino!" Kai burst out of one of the trucks.

"What is it now?"

"It's Yukie, she's up and vanished again!"

"What?!"

Kazuma let out a frustrated sigh "Just hold on, let me handle this." and he disappeared in a green flash.

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White.

That was all Koyuki saw as she ran for the hills as fast as his legs would carry her ' _Forget it, absolutely not, no way!'_ then she finally tripped and collapsed, lying there in the snow, and passed out, recalling her father telling her about spring when she was a little girl ' _You're a liar father, there is no spring in this land.'_ then she opened her eyes.

"Honestly, how many times are you going to run away from your fate before you learn that you can't escape?"

Koyuki looked and saw Kazuma standing in front of her "Come on, everybody else is waiting for us."

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Koyuki soon found herself being carried on Kazuma's back "Why is it that you always come looking for me?"

"I do it because it's my mission." Kazuma told her simply "It doesn't matter how much you may hate it and I couldn't care less how much you do, I'm going to keep coming after you as many times as I have to. Just try and hide, no matter what I'm always going to find you."

"You can drag me back if you like, but all I'm going to do is act for the camera. That's all there is, you understand?"

"I-" Kazuma stopped when he heard a train whistle and looked down to see the tracks thawing out.

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Makino and the rest noticed it too "What is that?"

Sandayu checked it "It's chakra, there's chakra running through the rails and melting the ice." he then froze "It must be him. Everyone hurry, you must get out of here! You can't let them find you, it's not safe!" and he ran off.

"Sandayu! Where are you going?"

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Koyuki listened to what they were hearing "It sounds like… a train."

"A train?" Kazuma looked and saw a train coming towards them "And that's my cue to run like hell." and he took off running as fast as his legs would carry him, with the train gaining.

"It's gaining on us!"

"Not if I can help it!"

"It's useless, you'll never make it!"

"You can forget it, I'll never give up no matter what!"

"There's no way you can do this!"

"Will you shut up and let me concentrate!" Kazuma kept running ' _I can't concentrate long enough to use the Flying Raijin Jutsu like this, I'm gonna have to outrun it!'_

"We can't, it's totally pointless-"

"This isn't over!" his tone and ferocity took her by surprise "You'll have to kill me before I ever give up, even if you want to call it quits I'll never give up! Not now, not EVER! Come on, come on, come on, come on, come on, come on, come on, come on, come on, come on, come on, COME ON!" and with one final burst of speed, he burst out of the other side of the tunnel and leapt to the side just before they were hit "There… I told you we'd make it…" then he suddenly started laughing.

Koyuki stared at him, then at the train ' _That's…'_

" _It's been a long time, Koyuki."_

Hearing that voice, Koyuki froze "I knew it… it's Doto…"

"It's been 10 years." Doto noted from his end "Come now don't be shy. Let's get a look at that face." then he looked to the side to see various logs sliding down the hill and crashing into the train ' _Oh great, more of this.'_

As it turns out, Sandayu stood in samurai armor with dozens of other soldiers, all armed and ready for combat "There you have it men, our beloved Princess Koyuki is here to watch over us! With her at our side, victory is ours!"

Koyuki stared in awe ' _What the-? Sandayu?'_

"Hear me Doto!" Sandayu drew his sword "We've waited a long time for this day of reckoning to come! Sandayu Asama and 50 loyal warriors stand before you to avenge our fallen leader Lord Sosetsu, on this day you will breathe no more!" he received cheers from the men.

Doto looked on nonchalantly "I thought you destroyed the last of the insurgents."

Nadare bowed his head "My apologies, we'll be sure to get rid of them immediately."

"There's no need for you to bother, with men such as these there is little that they can understand other than total annihilation."

"ATTACK!" Sandayu and the men all drew their swords and charged.

"Fire." Doto gave the order, and several waves of kunai shot out of the train, massacring the men almost immediately, and he let out a maniacal laughter as they fell one by one.

After this, only Sandayu was left standing "No…" one final wave shot out and impaled him, and they collapsed.

Kazuma looked up to see Itachi and Ayame detonating the kunai cannons and burying the train in snow, hoping to bury Doto alive ' _Guys…'_

Shisui stopped Itachi from pursuing "Hold on Itachi, we can't be hasty in a situation like this one."

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Later, Shisui, Itachi and film crew were taking care of the bodies.

"How awful." Ayame murmured, with Kazuma gripping her hand tightly.

"That's what happens when you never give up." Koyuki said bitterly "If they hadn't stood up to Doto then none of this bloodshed would've happened."

Sandayu was brought over by Shisui and the others "My princess…"

"Sandayu." Koyuki knelt down beside him.

"Please forgive me… I never should've gotten you… involved in all of this… It's just that… every single one of us here… were able to keep believing in spite of everything… because we knew that you were alive… when you were little, and even now, you have always been… just as I, your loyal Sandayu, believed… so too must you believe in yourself… You have always been our purest hope princess… please, do not waste… your tears… on me…" and with that, he fell still.

"You are such a fool Sandayu. I can't cry, you have my eye drops." Koyuki then turned to the others "Are you all satisfied? Let's just go back, if you stay here then your lives will be in jeopardy." she started walking away "Let's go home already."

"Go home to where?" Kazuma stopped her, his voice soft "I thought this was your home wasn't it? What could possibly have to go back to now? Your place is here, now face Doto and put your house in order like you're supposed to."

"...You know absolutely nothing. Spring doesn't come to this country, our tears have long since frozen over and our hearts have hardened with the cold."

"But aren't you the only one with the power to change that?" asked Ayame "At least that was what Sandayu believed in anyway, wasn't it?"

"...I've had enough of this nonsense." she started walking away.

"Hold on a minute!" Kazuma stormed up and grabbed her wrist.

"Leave me alone already!" Koyuki shook him off.

"Listen you-" Kazuma cut himself off when he looked beyond the cliff "Oh great."

Koyuki looked back to see a large blimp airship "Oh crap."

"Gotcha!" from the airship Mizore fired off his retractable cable arm and captured Koyuki with it, as Fubuki dropped several kunai with miniature ice bombs attack.

Itachi looked around "Shisui, Ayame, where did Kazuma go?" then he looked up at the airship and groaned "Don't tell me…"

Kazuma stood in the doorway of the airship "I'll bring her back even if it kills me!"

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Doto had Koyuki with him in one of the rooms of his airship "You've grown quite beautiful Koyuki. Tell me little princess, do you have the Hex Crystal with you?"

"Yes." her tone was uncaring.

"Good, it is the sole remaining link to the Kazahana clan as well as the key to opening its treasure."

"A key to what exactly?"

"When I _rested_ this land from the hands of your father, the resources of the Kazahana clan were all but gone. I knew that Sosetsu must have hidden his riches somewhere, I searched for a long time and now I've finally found it. It is hidden deep within the Rainbow Glacier, there's a keyhole there that can only be opened by the Hex Crystal. Once I have possession of the Kazahana fortune, our country can attain superiority over the Five Great Nations."

Then Kazuma suddenly appeared between them in a green flash "And you're a fool if you think I'll let that happen."

' _This fool again._ How on earth did you get in here?"

Kazuma pointed to where the guards were piling up unconscious "Your security is horrible, I didn't even have to use the Flying Raijin Jutsu."

' _The Flying Raijin, as in the jutsu used by the Second Hokage and Fourth Hokage?'_

"How's this for pathetic!" Mizore quickly bound Kazuma when his guard was down and knocked him to the ground.

Then Fubuki came in with several of Kazuma's Shadow Clones "These ones too."

Then Nadare appeared and knelt down on one knee "My apologies, as you can see the little runt was kind of a handful."

"Not surprising." Doto commented "Especially since he knows the Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu and the Flying Raijin Jutsu."

"I don't know who this brat is, but his level of chakra is nothing to sniff at." Mizore noted.

"I can see that."

"What do you think?" asked Nadare "Maybe we should try out that contraption on him."

"He would make for an interesting test subject."

"Alright then." Nadare pulled a device out of a secret compartment and slammed it onto Kazuma's stomach, and it latched onto him and began electrocuting him, causing him to scream in pain.

"He was right, this is interesting."

Koyuki tried to hide her horror "What is that?"

"We're simply cleansing him of his chakra, that device will absorb any stored within his body and bind it within a powerful barrier. Once it has been activated it cannot be broken or destroyed, no matter what."

Kazuma felt himself growing weaker "My strength… it's starting to slip away…" his Shadow Clones all disappeared as well.

Nadare smirked "Not looking like much of a ninja anymore are you? Now you're nothing more than a naive little kid."

"You… dirty…" then he passed out.

"Now then, I'll take the Hex Crystal if you don't mind." Doto requested.

"Do what you will." Koyuki removed the necklace and handed it to him.

Doto eagerly took it, then frowned "What is this?" he grabbed her by the front of her coat "This isn't a game, you think I don't know this is a fake?"

"No, that's impossible!" then she realized ' _Of course, he must've switched it while I was unconscious!_ Shisui Uchiha…"

"What?"

"Make sense." Nadare commented "Shisui is a shrewd one, I wouldn't put it past him to pull a bait n switch."

"Don't even worry about it, we'll have him rounded up in no time." Fubuki assured.

"That won't be necessary." Doto let go of Koyuki "Why even bother? Shisui Uchiha will show up on his own soon enough, all we have to do is wait until then."

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Kazuma came to and found himself bound in Doto's dungeon ' _Great, just my luck. Trapped in a dungeon with no access to my chakra. I guess I should've spent more time practicing the Escape Jutsu.'_ he struggled to remove a small object from his sandal "These guys don't know who they're dealing with, a real ninja finds a way with or without his chakra. Just look at Guy for example." then he looked and saw two of Doto's ninja lock Koyuki in a cell on the other side.

Koyuki just shot Kazuma a cynical look "Serves you right."

"You think so? Well you too."

"I know."

"No spring, you said there was no spring here. What did you mean by that?"

"...My father always said that I would see when the spring came. He told me to close my eyes and surround myself with flowers, and to run through it as fast as I could. He said that it would make me feel warm and happy, and _that_ was spring, and that if I never gave up, if I believed in the future then spring would surely come. But this land has no spring, my father died and I fled from the Land of Snow, and I stopped believing. I was always running and always lying to people, though mostly I was just lying to myself. My life has been one big charade. Becoming an actress was about the only thing I was cut out for in this world."

Kazuma stared for a moment, then used the mini knife hidden in his boot to try and saw off the cuffs.

"That's not going to change anything you know."

Kazuma pulled himself up, only to drop the knife.

"I told you, in the end all you can do is give up."

"...I bet it's a lot easier when you give up isn't it? I lost my parents when the Kyuubi attacked my village. Even with Itachi by my side I just tried to blow it off for the sake of being strong for my little brother, but inside the pain was killing me. I used to think there was no place in this world for me anymore, no one that ever truly cared about me. But…" he struggled and got zapped again "But even despite that, I was able to make some friends. I kept at it, I didn't give up, and now I've got all of these bongs. When you give up, your dreams and everything else, they're gone forever!" he kept struggling and continued being electrocuted.

"Just stop!"

"Your father… Sandayu… I'm going to show you… that they weren't WRONG!" he kept on struggling.

"Kazuma…"

With one final burst of strength, Kazuma cut his shackles "Now we've just… gotta get you out of there…" he gropped the bars, only to be electrocuted, and collapsed to the ground.

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Doto received word they were being attacked, and he knew fully well who it was.

Shisui and his team had finally shown themselves.

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Some of the Snow ninja noticed Kazuma on the floor "Hold on, when did he-?" he removed the seal and opened the door.

"Gotcha." Kazuma promptly punched them out "Yet another reason why underestimating a ninja is a _very_ bad idea."

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Next thing Koyuki knew, she and Kazuma were running along a higher floor, only for a masked Snow ninja to appear "Stop!"

"You son of a-" Kazuma started attacking wildly.

"Hold it hold it Kazuma!" the ninja removed his cloak, revealing Shisui "Relax, it's only me."

"Shisui."

"Sorry to keep you waiting, but at least the princess looks alright."

"Yeah." Koyuki shot Shisui a glare "You switched my Hex Crystal with a fake while I was unconscious without telling me didn't you?"

"Yeah, and I'm really sorry about that." Shisui handed her the real Hex Crystal "But I figured that this was what he was after."

Koyuki stared at the Hex Crystal in his hand "All for this thing huh?"

"Guys!"

Kazuma looked back and saw Itachi and Ayame approaching "Ayame! Itachi!"

"This place is crawling with guards, we'll have to hurry."

"This way!" Koyuki led them away from the cells.

They followed her, knowing fully well that if they didn't defeat Doto then they would all be killed.

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Koyuki stopped them in the throne room "Here."

The light turned on, and Doto made himself known "Well done, Koyuki."

Then Koyuki suddenly ran up to him.

"Wait!" Shisui tried to chase after her, only for Nadare and the rest to block his way ' _This can't be…'_

Koyuki handed the Hex Crystal to Doto "Here." then she looked down to the others "This really shouldn't be a surprise to any of you. I mean really, I'm an actress after all aren't I?"

Doto smirked "There you have it, another brilliance performance put on by the great Yukie Fujikaze."

"Yes… it was all an act…" Koyuki suddenly drew a dagger and stabbed Doto square in the chest with it "I told you didn't I? I'm an actress!"

"Y-You wretched-" Doto grabbed Koyuki by the throat.

"D-Damn…"

"Princess!" Kazuma cried.

"I always knew… Kazuma… that if I ever returned to the Land of Snow… I would die here… at least I could…"

"Don't you do it, don't you dare stop fighting!"

"Kazuma… it's only thanks to you… that I could stop running away… here in the end…"

"No, because all you're doing _is_ running away! Don't throw away your life like this!"

"I'm sorry father… Sandayu…" Koyuki pushed Doto off of the edge, falling with him.

"Koyuki!"

She hit the ground.

"Koyuki!" Kazuma raced over.

Then Doto suddenly got up and slugged him, the dagger still in his chest "You really thought you could kill me did you? With this little toy of all things?" he removed his kimono, revealing a black suit of Chakra Armor "That's right, it's our latest prototype of the Chakra Armor developed by the scientists here in the Land of Snow." he grabbed Koyuki.

"Don't you dare touch her with those filthy hands of yours!" Kazuma charged at Doto in a rage.

Doto merely swatted him aside "You're wasting your time, every ounce of your chakra has been completely sealed away. Come Koyuki, let us go beyond the rainbow." he was suddenly pulled up by a wire attached to his back.

"No!" Kazuma wrapped a steel wire around Doto's arm, causing him to be pulled through the roof along with doto.

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Doto sprouted wings and started flying away, only to look back with disdain when he realized that Kazuma was following him "I've had just about enough of you!" he blitzed past Kazuma and severed the wire.

Koyuki watched in horror as Kazuma fell straight to the ground "KAZUMA!"

Doto laughed maniacally as he took off.

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The forest floor was quiet.

Kazuma got to his feet and struggled after Doto "This isn't over… I don't care what it takes… I refuse to give up… you hear me? You can run… but you can't hide… I'll follow as long as I have to…"

That was when the film crew showed up "Hop on kid, we'll give you a lift."

"Thanks…" Kazuma got on board.

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Doto led Koyuki to the Rainbow Glacier "Here we are."

"This is it…" Koyuki murmured "We've come here after all, I guess…"

Doto walked up and placed the Hex Crystal in the keyhole, causing the entire Rainbow Glacier to light up.

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Things were heating up on other ends.

Itachi was paired with Ayame against Mizore and Fubuki "Ayame, how close are they?"

"Hold on a second!" Ayame ducked under an attack ' _I've got it!_ 20 degrees left in 5 seconds 30 meters out, you want to aim for that branch!"

"Right!" Itachi quickly wrapped some wire around a branch.

"Give it up, it's useless!"

"You think so?" Ayame revealed several kunai with purple bags within her cloak and hurled them forward.

Mizore was unfazed "Come on, don't make me laugh!" he charged right through them, only to realize that the bags were filled with tiny paper bombs.

" **Flower Bomber Barrage.** Enjoy." Ayame fired off one more paper bomb, engulfing Mizore in an explosion.

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Fubuki forced herself straight through the wire "You're dealing with the ninja of the Snow here, it will take a lot more than that to bring down the likes of us!"

Itachi suddenly blitzed behind Fubuki using the Dancing Leaf Shadow "You're probably right about that. **Crow Combo!"** he sent Fubuki towards to the ground with a fierce barrage of kicks to the stomach.

Fubuki made contact with Mizore, their Chakra Armor suits colliding with each other and reacted, the result being a fiery explosion, killing them both.

Itachi landed on the ground "Apparently their suits making contact like that and damaging each other results in a violent explosion."

Ayame blinked "Looks that way."

"For now, let's just meet up with Kazuma while Shisui deals with the last one."

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Nadare faced off with Shisui "You really think you've got a shot of winning against me? Maybe you oughta turn tail and run away like last time."

Shisui promptly activated his Sharingan "I'm not the same person I was back then. Besides, I don't have a choice do I? At the very least, I can show off the new jutsu Kazuma developed." he formed a hand seal, electricity crackling in his leg hand " **Lightning Style: Purple Thunder!"**

" **Ice Style: Wolf Fang Avalanche!"** Nadare summoned ice in the form of wolves, causing an avalanche in the process.

Shisui leapt over the wolves and destroyed the last one with Purple Thunder, damaging Nadare's armor in the process.

Nadare leapt back, his armor now sporting a minor crack "Too bad, you almost had me there." he leapt back so he wouldn't be caught in the next avalanche, only to find himself caught by a glowing green hand "What?!"

Shisui emerged from the avalanche, clad in his Full Body Susanoo "Even if I can't beat you with ninjutsu or genjutsu, I've still got this. It's called the Susanoo, the ultimate weapon produced by the Mangekyo Sharingan. You rely too much on your armor, you should've focused more on your natural abilities!" and he slammed Nadare straight into the ground, breaking his neck and killing him "Well that's one down, I'd better join up with the others." and he flew off as fast as the Susanoo would carry him.

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Doto wasn't seeing any sort of riches, much to his irritation "I don't see it. The treasure, where is it?" then he noticed the ice melting.

Koyuki suddenly felt the temperature rising "It's so warm… what is this…?"

"A heat generator? _This_ is the hidden treasure of the Kazahana clan?!"

"KOYUKI!" riding with the film clan, Kazuma charged onto the scene "Get ready Doto, this ends here and now!"

"Finally, something we agree on." Doto formed several hand seals " **Ice Style: Black Dragon Blizzard!"** a black ice dragon shot out of the armor, engulfing Kazuma almost instantly.

"Kazuma!" Koyuki cried out.

Kazuma emerged from the smoke and collapsed on top of the frozen lake "Wh-What's the matter?" he struggled to his knees "I barely… even felt that…"

"Kazuma that's enough, if you don't stop then he's going to kill you!"

"Please trust me, Koyuki… if you just have a little faith in me… then I promise you… I will not lose!" the device on his chest suddenly cracked as his eyes changed.

"Kazuma…"

Doto was quick to notice this ' _How the-?! Is it- Is it possible that the chakra is leaking out somehow?'_ not wanting to take any chances, Doto charged forward "DIE!" and he shattered the ice over the lake, sending Kazuma down below.

Koyuki fell to her knees.

" **Lightning Style: Purple Thunder!"** Itachi attempted to attack Doto from behind, landing a crack on his armor.

Doto quickly slammed Itachi into a pillar of ice "Did you really believe your pitiful jutsu would have any sort of effect on me?"

Itachi emerged from the ice, his Sharingan disappearing "Kazuma… his armor has been fractured… the rest… is up to you…" then he lost consciousness.

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Kazuma was sinking to the bottom of the lake ' _Itachi… he called out to me… he needs me… Itachi needs me… get up… get up… I have to get up… I promised… I will… I WILL PROTECT THEM!'_ his eyes shot open, now blue with white irades, the device on his stomach shattering.

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"DOTO!" a furious voice thundered.

"What?" Doto looked and saw Kazuma burst out of the water "What?!"

"Now it's payback time you sorry scum, and I'm gonna give it back with interest!"

"Fine you little halfwit, come and get me! **Ice Style: Twin Dragon Blizzard!"** doto unleashed two black ice dragons at once, forming a tornado of black snow.

When it subsided, Kazuma was nowhere in sight.

"It's over, this ridiculous little farce is over!" then Doto looked back.

"Not yet isn't, it's like I told you already!" Kazuma emerged from the smoke, his eyes now back to normal with a cyan coloured Rasengan forming in his hand.

Koyuki stared in awe ' _Kazuma…'_

"It's not over until justice prevails and evil is wiped out! After all, there's no such thing as a good story without a happy ending right?"

"Kazuma! I believe in you! You are by far the strongest ninja I've ever known!"

"Yeah I know, any one of my team could've told you that!" Kazuma charged forward.

Shisui showed up with Ayame to help Itachi, and looked around ' _Rainbow chakra, it's just like it is in the movies.'_ he smiled slightly ' _Go ahead Kazuma, end this.'_

" **RASENGAN!"** and with that, he slammed the Rasengan straight into Doto, shattering his armor and sending him spiralling back into one of the Generator Walls, killing him instantly upon impact, causing all of the snow and ice to melt instantaneously, revealing spring underneath.

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Makino and his group looked around in awe "Wait a minute, could this be-?! We're making this movie in 3D?!"

Kai and the rest were more focused on the fact that the Land of Snow had basically become the Land of Spring.

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Koyuki looked around, suddenly recalling a conversation with her father about becoming a strong and kind princess who would always fight for justice ' _Did I… Did I actually say such things?'_ she saw an image of her father, tears falling from her eyes, and she suddenly began laughing.

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Kazuma lay in the grass, giving off a weak thumbs up "Oh yeah… now that's what I call a happy ending…" then he passed out.

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About a week went by, and things were dying down, now that Koyuki had taken her rightful place as ruler of the Land of Snow, and now everyone was celebrating.

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"That generator wasn't even fully developed in the end." Koyuki was explaining.

Shisui raised an eyebrow "You mean to tell me it wasn't fully developed but it was still _that_ powerful? So I guess it's gonna be back to winter soon."

"Not really, if we take what we know and continue researching then before you know it the Land of Snow will soon turn into the Land of Spring."

"Yeah but it's kind of shame." Ayame commented "You're such a big star, are you really going to retire from acting."

"Get real, who said anything about me retiring? Ruling over the Land of Snow and acting at the same time, I think I can manage. I mean I'd have to be completely out of my mind to give it up at this stage in the game." she held up a certain script.

Shisui's jaw dropped through the floor "Th-That script… that's…"

"Yep, Make Out Paradise. But seriously, I can't thank you guys enough for everything you've done for me. If there's ever anything you need, anything at all then just let me know and I'll do it. Well, I'll be seeing you." and she walked off, instantly being bombarded by people asking for autographs.

"That script… she's perfect…" Shisui instantly summoned a messenger hawk "Oh man Kakashi is gonna have a field day when he hears about this."

Then Kazuma suddenly freaked out "Oh god dammit I am so stupid, I should've asked her for an autograph when I had the chance!"

"Oh you don't have to worry about that, I already got one from her while you were stuck in the hospital." Itachi told him.

"...What?!"

Itachi held up an envelope "Here."

Kazuma looked at the picture and groaned "Oh come on look at me, you couldn't have at least used a better picture or something?"

"As fun as this has been, we've got other business to deal with." Shisui turned serious "I mean preventing the Uchiha from attempting the coup that could lead to the start of the Fourth Great Ninja War, ringing any bells anybody?"

"Oh yeah." Kazuma thought for a moment, before a light bulb went off in his head "Wait, that's it!"

"You've got something? I was actually thinking of using my Kotoamatsukami on the clan so they won't go through with it."

"Yeah, but then we still have Madara to deal with." Itachi pointed out "So what's your idea then?"

Kazuma took a deep breath "I think that instead of using it on the Uchiha clan, Shisui should use his Kotoamatsukami on Madara."

"But it's Madara Uchiha, one of the most powerful Uchiha to ever exist. I doubt that would work." Ayame pointed out.

"To escape from it, he'll most likely use Izanagi, the jutsu that brings one back to life in exchange for sight in one eye. Then he'll most likely going for one eye, he'll do anything to get his hands on Kotoamatsukami, so here's what I think. We all know Danzo wants the power of the Sharingan as much as Madara if not more, so I think we should give it to him."

"...What?" was the chorused reply.

"Look I don't like Danzo any more than the next guy, but better him than Madara right? So here's what I think, we give one eye to Danzo and hide the other eye elsewhere."

"But where?" asked Itachi.

"I think Shisui himself should decide when the time comes."

"But then where would I go?"

"Oh you'll fake your own death and awaken Itachi's Mangekyo Sharingan. And keep in mind, we're in with the lady of the Land of Snow. We can ask her to grant Shisui asylum here in the Land of Snow so he can train in solitude to the point where he's strong enough to defeat Madara."

They wanted to argue, but knew that it was the best chance they had to take Madara down for good without too many people getting hurt.

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"And that's how it went." Kazuma finished.

"...So Shisui is alive all this time?" Kakashi asked slowly.

"Yep."

"And he's been training in the Land of Snow in hiding?" asked Sasuke.

"Yep."

"And you convinced the lady of the Land of Snow to act as the starring role in the Make Out Paradise movie?" asked Danzo.

"...I don't see what that has to do with anything, but indirectly yes." then he looked up and saw an airship descending outside the village "And that must be him." he grabbed Sasuke and Danzo and disappeared in a green flash.

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Kazuma blitzed in front of the airship with Danzo and Sasuke "She's here."

Then Koyuki stepped out of the airship "I am Lady Koyuki of the Land of Spring here to speak with the Hokage of the Hidden Leaf."

Danzo stepped forward "I am currently acting as Hokage of the Hidden Leaf, if you have a matter involving the Leaf then please take it up with me."

"Very well. I had heard about the horrible tragedy that has befallen your village, and I decided to come here in person to tell you that the Land of Spring will be in full support of your rebuilding efforts."

"You have my thanks." Danzo bowed "However, there is one more piece of business I wish to ask you about."

"It's about me, right?"

Danzo looked back and saw Shisui standing behind him "To think you were capable of appearing behind me without me even noticing, your skills have certainly improved."

"That was the idea."

"Shisui." Sasuke stepped up.

"Hi Sasuke." Shisui turned to face him "I'm really sorry for having to deceive you about the Uchiha clan and the coup."

"Don't worry about it." he wrapped an arm around Shisui's shoulder and began leading him back to the village "Come on, you've got a lot of stuff to catch up on."

 **A/N:**

 **Just to be clear, this is before Itachi joins the ANBU, and I put Shisui in place of Kakashi here to give him a chance to shine.**

 **I don't know how old Shisui is, so I'm gonna say that by Part II he's 26. 5 years older than Itachi, 5 years younger than Kakashi and the rest.**

 **To reader R:**

 **Yes Sakura will be the main villain of the Five Kage Summit Arc, and Kabuto will now be the fourth.**

 **I'm thinking of having Naruto be the one to fight her and kill her, give him some bonus character development.**

 **I'm gonna have Sasuke nearly sacrifice himself to save Kin, showing that he still loves her, and maybe have him propose to her.**

 **Lee's girl will appear next chapter, as well as a certain OVA that's hard as f*ck to find.**

 **I'm planning on wrapping up the whole thing with Naruto and Hinata after covering the OVA I mentioned above.**

 **I'm thinking of Danzo fighting it out with a certain Uchiha constantly mentioned and have him sacrifice himself.**


	21. Protect the Waterfall, New Couples Born

Tatsu entered the Hokage's tent, with Naruto and Lee right behind him "You wanted to see us?"

Danzo nodded "I did. I received a messenger hawk yesterday that the leader of another village is coming to meet with me. You should know him quite well, you've escorted him on a previous mission."

"Wait, you mean-?" Tatsu let out an exasperated groan "You mean _that_ guy?"

"Yes, and _that_ guy is standing right behind you."

Tatsu looked to see a young man with a certain headband standing behind him "Oh great, it's you." note the sarcasm in his tone.

"You know this guy?" asked Naruto.

"This is Shibuki, the leader of the Hidden Waterfall Village in the Land of Forests."

"It's a pleasure to meet you." Shibuki then went up to Lee and held out his hand "Lee, it's great to see you again."

Lee shook his hand "The same to you Shibuki, I can tell you've truly become quite the capable warrior."

"I have, thanks to the jutsu you and Tatsu taught me." purple markings suddenly appeared around his cheeks "Now I can enter Sage Mode freely, and when I can't I can just use the Eight Gates to increase my capabilities as a substitute." the markings disappeared "A certain kunoichi was very adamant on accompanying me here, she really wanted to see you."

"Is she here?"

"She's here, and she'd also appreciate it if she was referred to by name!" then she came into the tent "Hey Lee!"

"Fu!" Lee spun Fu around in a hug and kissed her full on the lips.

Naruto couldn't have been more dumbstruck "...Huh?"

"Oh yeah, you guys haven't met." Lee wrapped an arm around Fu's waist "Naruto, this is my girlfriend Fu."

"...Huh?"

"She's a kunoichi from the Hidden Waterfall Village, and she's the former jinchuuriki of the Seven Tails."

"...Huh?"

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Lee handed Naruto a soda as they sat on the Hokage Monument "Okay, now you can start bombarding me with questions."

Naruto did just that "What the f*ck?! Who's that chick? How is she still alive if she _was_ a jinchuuriki? Didn't the Akatsuki capture her? How did the extraction not kill her?!"

Lee smacked him upside the head "Okay, not that many at once. Let me start from the beginning." he took a deep breath and began his story "It all began with a simple C-rank mission. I was on a mission with Tatsu, Sasuke and Kin on escort duty, and we were supposed to see that Shibuki, the young leader of the Hidden Waterfall Village, got home safely. Shibuki's father Hisen had been the head of the village for many years during the Third Great Ninja War, he was a good and courageous leader who was respected by everyone in the village. Shibuki on the other hand wasn't exactly a chip off the old block. How that nervous wreck could ever hope to lead a village was honestly beyond me."

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Lee looked at where Shibuki was hiding behind Kin "Dude, it was just a bird."

Shibuki bolted up "I know that, I know what it was!" then he hid again.

' _How I get stuck doing stuff like this I'll never know.'_

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Soon enough they arrived at the waterfall.

Lee looked around "Woah, now _that_ is what I call a waterfall."

Tatsu nodded "I know, it really is pretty impressive isn't it?"

"I take it that means we've arrived?" Sasuke guessed.

"Yep, we're here." then he pulled Sasuke aside so the others couldn't hear "You know about the rumors don't you?"

"You mean about how this is the only village outside of the five great shinobi villages that houses a jinchuuriki?"

"Yeah, and it's mainly because they're capable of producing such skilled jonin. I'm just saying, keep an eye out."

"Right." then they rejoined the others.

Lee looked around as they made their way along the river "Wow."

Shibuki nodded "I know, it really is beautiful isn't it? They say that this village was carved by my ancestors here years ago."

"Lord Shibuki!" a young voice called.

Shibuki looked to see a couple of kids running towards him "Now now, keep your distance. Show a little respect for your village leader. I'm sorry I don't have time to play with you right now."

"But that's not why we're here, we're supposed to clean up the trash by the shore. Mother is making us pick up every single piece."

"I see. Well look, I've brought you some help." he gestured to Lee and the rest "These ninja had come from the Hidden Leaf Village."

Lee immediately began to protest "Hey hold on a minute, you don't really mean-"

"It won't take much time, just think of it as part of the mission."

"Hold on a minute, do we look like garbage men to you? You've gotta be out of your-"

"Thank you ninja!" the kids were right up in his face "We could really use your help, the current is stronger near the edge and it can be pretty scary."

"...Tatsu, what do you think?"

Tatsu shrugged "That depends, we are getting extra pay in addition to the already existing fee for the escort mission aren't we?"

Shibuki nodded "Yes, that's fine."

"Then we're more than happy to help in any way we can."

"Thank you."

"So our bodyguard duty is over?" asked Sasuke.

"Yeah that's right, I'm home safe and sound now."

Tatsu sighed "Alright guys, let's hurry up and get on to phase 2 of this mission, and we can cut the time in half." he formed a hand seal " **Shadow Clone Jutsu."** he promptly summoned 10 Shadow Clones "Alright guys, let's get this over with so Sasuke and Kin can make out."

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At the same time, Suien, a rogue jonin from the Hidden Waterfall, had recruited various Hidden Rain ninja by the name of Hisame, Kirisame and Murasame, as well as another rogue jonin from the Hidden Waterfall by the name of Suika, and they showed them how to enter the village.

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Tatsu was reading his favorite book while supervising the others picking up trash "You know all things considered, us sticking around for a little while might not be the worst idea."

"How do you figure?" asked Shibuki.

"We might be able to put a stop to these rumors."

"What rumors?"

"It may be nothing, but lately there's been some indications that some rogue ninja have certain plans for your village."

"Oh you don't have to worry, there have been rumors like that going around for ages."

"Oh believe me I know, my brother told me about them when I was a kid. Come to think of it, didn't your father have to fight off a bunch of trouble makers like that once?"

"That was a long time ago." then he ducked when he realized that a bird was coming.

Tatsu caught it "Calm down big guy, it's just a messenger bird from the Hidden Leaf Village. Air mail, special delivery." he checked out the message "Looks like I'm being called back for some important business."

"Does this mean you're leaving?"

"I'm afraid so but don't worry, Lee and the others have the clean up pretty much covered." then he looked over to the others "Hey guys, I hate to spoil your fun but I've gotta get going."

"Did something happen?" asked Lee.

"Apparently they need me to deal with another mission right away, something about taking care of some rogue ninja from the Hidden Sand. I'm gonna head back early, you guys follow once you're done with the clean up."

"Got it, I'm sure that if the Hokage needs you then it must be important."

"That's the point. Alright guys, I'll see you later." and he took off.

' _So he basically just bailed on us. Typical.'_

"So what's a Hokage?" asked the kids.

"Oh the Hokage is what we call the leader of our village, the one who's responsible for protecting it and all the people in it. You know, kind of like the village chief."

"Oh yeah, you mean like Lord Shibuki right?"

"...We're talking about the same Shibuki right?"

They immediately grew defensive "Don't you make fun of Lord Shibuki, just because he isn't the bravest person in the world doesn't mean he isn't a hero to us! He's much stronger than he looks, he's tougher than you are!" they shoved him.

' _Dammit!'_

Sasuke grabbed Lee, preventing him from stepping in dog crap "We're not dealing with any of that."

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Suien and Suika were explaining the plan to the others but warned them to keep the killing to a minimum, planning to use the villagers as hostages for the Hero's Water, but only Shibuki knew the location.

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About an hour passed, and the cleanup was finished.

Sasuke cracked his neck a little "Alright, that's taken care of. Let's head back."

Lee groaned "Can't we just get a bite to eat or something?"

"Forget it, if you're done then you guys can go." Shibuki told them firmly.

"What's that?"

"You heard me, there's nothing keeping you guys here any longer so go home already."

"Fine by me then, let's go." Sasuke started walking away.

"Sasuke, hold on a minute." Kin stopped him "What's going on?"

"You haven't noticed? The secret entrance to the Hidden Waterfall Village must be close by, and he clearly doesn't want us to see it."

"Really? You think he has that little trust for us? But the Hidden Leaf and the Hidden Waterfall are supposed to be allies."

Shibuki let out a loud scoff "Yes but what if one day they're not, what's to keep you from betraying us?"

Sasuke nodded "Sound logic, I can see your reasoning."

"You son of a-" Lee rounded on him "How much of an ungrateful bastard can you be?! The least you could do is thank us after everything you've put us through!"

Shibuki didn't bother to have a stare down "Now will you please just get out of here?"

"Fine by me, good riddance." he started walking away.

"Thanks a lot Lee!" the kids waved "Bye, see ya!"

"Sure thing, see ya."

"Mother!"

Lee looked back and saw an older woman limping towards them.

"Lord Shibuki… it was awful…" she got out.

"What is it? What happened?" asked Shibuki.

"They attacked without warning…" then she collapsed, revealing a kunai in her back.

Kin was quick to check on her "She's lost consciousness but she should be fine."

The kids were still worried "We've gotta hurry and get to the village right away."

"No, that's the wrong move in a situation like this." Sasuke told them "Remember, she said that they attacked without any sort of warning."

"But that's impossible." Shibuki protested "How could anyone even find the village?"

"I've got a couple of theories, I'll tell you on the way. Kin, I want you to take the children and the woman and find a safe place to take care of her while we deal with this. Alright?"

Lee was quick to round on a terrified looking Shibuki "Are you just going to sit here and do nothing? Just show us the way to your village already, whoever these guys might be we'll deal with them."

Shibuki then rounded on him in return "Oh you will will you? I'd like that, how could you possibly help us anyway?"

"Listen you son of a-"

"Will you two shut up and get down!" Sasuke pinned both of them to the ground.

"What the hell was that for Sasuke?"

"Just stay down." Sasuke leapt up.

Then Suika emerged from the waterfall with Murasame several followers "Just come on, let's finish this already! **Fire Style: Red Spider!"** he breathed out some flames that took on the form of a spider, while Murasame the others just threw a barrage of kunai.

Sasuke drew a large shuriken " **Demon Wind Shuriken, Windmill of Thunder!"** he infused the shuriken with lightning and cut threw the lackeys, taking them out in an instant, as wek

"So it looks like they've gotten help. Murasame, we're retreating." and he fled back into the waterfall, with Murasame following.

"I got all but two of them." Sasuke looked over to see Shibuki cowering "For crying out loud, get ahold of yourself."

Shibuki looked up "Oh sorry, I was just excited that's all."

"Alright, now that we're in this we're going to see it through to the end. This is a new mission."

Lee gripped his fists and smirked "Perfect, there's nothing like getting a little bit of combat training in right Sasuke?"

"We've gotta get ready for the Akatsuki don't we? This will be a good chance."

Shibuki just looked away ' _These guys…_ Come on, I'll lead you into the village since I clearly have no other choice."

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Once Kin and the others were hidden away, Shibuki began leading Naruto and Lee to the entrance to the village "These natural surroundings have been serving as a barrier that protects our village and hides us from the outside world. There's only one way in, and that's through the waterfall."

Lee looked at the waterfall ' _It's magnificent._ Is there really an entrance down there?"

"Let me make one thing clear, you must never reveal this secret to anyone."

"Yeah I know, we've already got it now let's go."

"Fine, then follow me." Shibuki led them into a cave behind the waterfall.

"Be careful, watch yourself." Sasuke warned "I'm not sensing the presence of any enemies here, I think it's safe."

"Good, let's move." Shibuki went ahead "If you're coming then hurry up already." and he dove into one of the pools.

Lee was skeptical "I don't know, should we?"

"It's not like we really have any kind of choice." Sasuke followed after Shibuki into one of the pools.

"Hey, wait up!" Lee followed after him ' _At least with the three of us, the enemy can't be that much of a problem.'_

He was wrong.

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Outside the village, Kin and the others were quickly captured by Kirisame and taken to the others.

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Shibuki led the others into the village "Here we are."

Lee looked at the massive tree in front of them "Woah, no way."

"Come on, this way." Shibuki led them to shore.

"This is a really cool place you've got here, no wonder you'd want to keep it hidden."

Sasuke looked around ' _It's strange, something isn't right here. Where are all the people?'_ he looked and saw Shibuki sneak away in the water ' _Son of a-_ Lee, move!" he shoved Lee into the water.

Lee burst back up, looking pissed "Hey man, what the hell is that for?!"

"I'm gonna stay here and hold these guys off." he started kicking out random lackeys left and right "You find Shibuki and get him to safety."

"Yeah, sure." Lee looked around "Hey Shibuki, where the hell did you go?" he swam off after him.

Sasuke leapt into the air " **Lightning Style: Purple Thunder!"** he quickly fired a blast of lightning, frying three lackeys at once.

"Well now, you're not bad at all kid." Hisame and Murasame suddenly appeared and bound him with the Water Whip.

' _Dammit, they caught me before I could even sense their presence. These guys are tough.'_

"You really didn't think it would be as easy as last time did you? Should we cut him in half or let him suffer first?"

' _...Crap.'_

"Wait." Suien appeared behind Sasuke "He might come in handy when the time comes for us to negotiate."

' _Who the hell is this guy?'_ Sasuke was then fried by the jutsu, causing him to scream in pain and black out.

"This kid got off way too lucky." Murasam commented "Alright, so what the hell are we waiting for? Where's the leader of this village supposed to be?"

Suien smirked "Don't worry, I'm sure he's on his way to secure the Hero's Water at this very moment."

"And once he's got it that's when we begin to negotiate right?" Hisame guessed.

"Exactly, it won't be long now."

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Shibuki swam towards the large tree in the center of the village and came across a small hiding place, which he opened to reveal a small jug of water ' _It must be protected, I can't let them have it no matter what.'_

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Things were getting bad, since Suien and the rest had taken the villagers hostage.

Sasuke himself was bound on a tori gate ' _Dammit, I can't move my arms!'_

"Don't bother." Suika told him "Unless you wanna be armless from now on that is, if you even try to use any jutsu then that wire will cut both of your arms off."

' _Dammit.'_

Then Kirisame dropped in with Kin and the others "Just like your ordered, I bagged them and brought them."

' _Kin!'_

"They're a bunch of kids, anyone could've done that." Suika pointed out dryly.

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Shibuki watched from where he was hiding ' _I don't get it, how in the world did they ever find their way here undetected?'_ then he froze ' _It can't be… Suien and Suika! Those two led them here!'_

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"Why Suien?" one of the villagers demanded "You and Suika were both our most respected jonin, how could you betray us like this? Are you planning on taking over the village?"

Suien let out a scoff "Please, what would I want with such a pathetic collection of huts? No, I've come for the Hero's Water."

"You're insane, do you really think Lord Shibuki will just hand it over to you? He'd pour it all on the ground before he'd let someone like you have it!"

"If Shibuki were a different sort of village leader then he might do something like that yes, but you forget that I'm the one who taught him and Suika the secret ways of ninjutsu. I know Shibuki better than anyone."

The villagers glared.

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Shibuki just watched from his hiding place ' _What should I do?'_

Then Lee suddenly dropped down out of nowhere "Hey."

Shibuki yelped and fell back "How did- How did you get here?"

"I was just poking around the roots of that gigantic tree and I just kind of wound up here by chance. But never mind that right now, who are those guys out there and what are they after?"

"Their leader is named Suien, he and another named Suika both used to be jonin from this village."

"Used to be? So they're both rogue ninja?"

"Yes."

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"Hey Shibuki, I know you can hear me wherever you're hiding!" Suien called "Now don't be shy, come on out right now and bring the Hero's Water with you! Don't make this village suffer anymore because of you!"

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Shibuki gripped the Hero's Water "I…"

"That stuff, is that the Hero's Water he's talking about?" asked Lee.

"Yes it is, and making sure it's protected is the most sacred of the leader of the Hidden Waterfall Village."

"That thing? It doesn't look like anything more than some regular old jug of water."

"It's much much more than that, this water is drawn from the trunk of the Sacred Tree only once every 100 years, and whoever drinks it will have his chakra increased 10-fold and maybe even more."

"Wh- 10 fold or more? Are you serious?"

"Yes. The Hidden Waterfall Village doesn't have any ninja as strong as your Hokage, so in times of trouble we've had to rely on the Hero's Water to defend ourselves. During the Third Great Ninja War, the Hero's Water was the only thing that saved us from destruction. However, drinking the Hero's Water comes with a terrible price that makes it a double-edged sword."

"What sort of price?"

"Whoever drinks the Hero's Water has their life shortened by the same degree to which their chakra was increased. Many of our shinobi have died not in battle, but from the effects of the Hero's Water. Since then, the Hero's Water has been hidden away to keep it out of people's hands, and it was made the duty of the village leader to guard it. Some years ago we were attacked by shinobi from a distant land, and as leader of the village my father did what he felt he had to do to protect us. He drank the Hero's Water but he wasn't exactly a young man, and the increase of his chakra was too great. My father was a fool, he performed his sacred duty and was hailed as a great leader because he drank the Hero's Water and died."

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Suien was still waiting "Shibuki, you wouldn't be foolish enough to think of pouring it out would you? No, if someone came along and attacked the village again then you wouldn't be able to defend yourself without the Hero's Water."

"That's enough!" one of the villagers barked.

"Why, because it's true?"

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Shibuki was still shaking "I know I'm the leader of the village, I have to guard the Hero's Water at all costs. But if I let them take it then I will have betrayed the trust of my people and doomed my village."

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"Time's running out Shibuki!" Suien warned "There's a limit to how long you can sit out there hiding away, so hand over the Hero's Water now or I'll start killing your villagers one by one very slowly and painfully."

"Don't do it Lord Shibuki, don't come out!" the kids called "You can't let them have the Hero's Water no matter what happens!"

Kirisame promptly smacked them with his Water Whip "Quiet you brats!"

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Lee gripped his fists and looked back at Shibuki "For crying out loud, we have to hurry and do something!"

"Just leave me alone!" Shibuki looked fearfully at a picture of his father.

"Those kids earlier told me that you were strong, you may not have very much faith in yourself Shibuki but they do. They talk about you like you're a hero."

"That's because they're only kids and they have it stuck in their heads that the village leader has to be a hero! I am not my father, all I did was inherit his title."

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Things were getting even worst.

Suien took the girl and held a kunai to her throat "Hey Shibuki, I've warned you before that my patience is not without limits! I'm going to give you one more minute, if you don't come out by that point then I'll start killing the children one by one starting with her!"

"Let her go!" the villagers demanded "If you're going to kill anyone then start with us not the children!"

"It's very tempting and personally I'd be happy to, but no offense but killing them is a much more effective argument then killing you guys. After all, Shibuki has always had a soft spot for the kiddies."

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Shibuki huddled himself up "I can't… I just can't…"

"I'm not going to pretend I know anything about you or your village, but it sounds to me like your father was a pretty great man." Lee told him.

"Well who are you? You don't know anything about my father!" he heard Suien call that he had 20 seconds left.

"You're right I don't know anything, but the one thing I do know is that your father was the type of man who was willing to sacrifice his life for the sake of his village and that's not something any ordinary man would do." he heard Suien call 10 seconds and promptly removed his leg weights.

"What are you going to do?"

"To risk everything like that without caring what happens to himself, that's a hero." Lee then tightened his headband "The way I see, it sounds to me like your father was the kind of man I would respect." and he leapt out.

' _Lee…'_

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"3… 2… 1!" Suien finished counting and prepared to strike, when…

" **Leaf Hurricane!'** a green blur shot out of the tree.

Suien was sent flying but a kick to the face, but he rebounded "What the-?"

Lee suddenly appeared on the ground in front of him and set the girl down, then got into a taijutsu stance "I hope you're ready, the Green Beast of the Leaf, your hero, has arrived."

"I ask for the Hero's Water and instead I get… whatever the hell this kid is supposed to be. Well I guess it's time I show you that I'm serious. Do it!"

Lee suddenly found himself bound by the Water Whip on both sides and found himself electrocuted, causing him to scream in pain and fall to his knees.

Kirisame chuckled "You just don't learn do you kid?" he then picked Lee up by the front of his shirt "So tell me, what kind of hero are you now?"

"You're about to find out…"

"Enough, this is only wasting our time." Suien picked up the girl "Come here girl, I'm not done with you."

"No!"

"Let's see just how tough our puny little hero really is." Kirisame promptly kicked Lee in the gut.

Then Hisame recognized him "Hold on a minute, this is the one who was with Shibuki. Maybe he can tell us where he's hiding if we're persuasive enough.

"Forget it… I'll never tell…" Lee snarled.

Suika promptly kicked him for good measure "This kid is all bark and no bite." he promptly stepped on Lee's back.

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Shibuki watched in sheer horror from his hiding place ' _He's a fool… a fool just like my father was.'_

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Hisame picked up Lee by the front of his shirt "If you talk then we'll let you live for a little while."

"Lady… you're so gonna regret this…" Lee rasped out.

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Shibuki fell to his knees "But why? Why would he do it? Why would he risk his life like that, and for some random people he doesn't even know?" he thought about Lee's words from before about being a hero ' _Lee… father…'_

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Sukia stomped on Lee's back "You're really getting on my nerves now."

"Okay… now I'm mad…" Lee snarled.

Kirisame smirked "Still playing the hero are you? You know how you spell hero? F-O-O-L."

' _Dammit!'_

"Pathetic." Suien mocked "We won't find any heroes here. Do you hear that Shibuki? This Hidden Waterfall Village hasn't had any sort of heroes for years, not since your father died!"

"No, that's a lie!" the kids protested "We have Lord Shibuki, he's our heroes!"

"Oh please, you really still believe that? Dream on."

"Just you wait, he'll come and when he gets here he'll tear you all to pieces!"

"Not the Shibuki I know, he's nothing but a weakling and a coward. He never fought a battle he couldn't run away from."

"You're wrong, Lord Shibuki doesn't run away! He's a hero!"

Suien held a kunai to the girl's throat "Well then I guess I'll just have to show you how much of a hero Shibuki really is, you're about to die because he cares more about saving himself than saving you."

"HEY!" then a water typhoon suddenly shot down in front of them, blitzing through Kirisame, Hisame and Murasame in an instant.

"What the-?"

The typhoon disappeared, revealing a pissed off Shibuki underneath it "Let the villagers go you coward, this is your only warning. You've been waiting for me this whole time, so here I am like you wanted."

Lee smirked bitterly "Better late than never I guess. _His chakra must be powerful, I can see it radiating from his body.'_

" **Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!"** Shibuku quickly summoned a water dragon and quickly took out the rest of the lackeys.

Now only Suien was left, along with Suika, but he was as confident as ever "Well well, it's been a long time Shibuki."

"And you haven't changed a bit, you're still as ugly as ever."

"Impressive chakra, I take it you drank from the Hero's Water?"

"Yes I did."

"But not all of it surely, where's the rest of it?"

"It's too late for you to do any good, I'm going to defeat you right here and right now."

"Quite the little hero aren't you? You're aware of what happens to someone of your limited abilities who drinks from the Hero's Water aren't you? You of all people should know that. It won't do you any good in any case you fool, you are so far out of your league. If you increase your chakra by 10 fold or even 20 fold, it's still no match for the level of chakra I already possess."

"We'll soon see about that won't we? Alright then, let's just test that little theory of your shall we? **Hidden Waterfall Style: Water Slicing Blade!"** Shibuki held out his hand and a water sword formed in his grip.

Suien tossed away the girl and formed his own sword, then began clashing with Shibuki "It doesn't matter if your chakra has increased, your moves haven't gotten any better. You left your guard wide open, just like you always have!" he knocked Shibuki's sword out of his grip and stabbed him in the chest, much to the horror of the villagers.

Shibuki lay on the ground, the effects of the Hero's Water wearing off "Move… get up… I must… for the village… for the children… I have to protect them…"

"You haven't changed either Shibuki, you never did show much ability." Suien kicked him over and stomped on his chest "You were weak then and you're weak now." then he reached into his shirt and pulled out the Hero's Water "How convenient, you were actually foolish enough to bring it with you. Now I have it at last, the Hero's Water! The world is finally mine for the taking!"

"Give it back…"

Suien promptly stomped on his foot and drank it, increasing his power as he stomped down even harder "Oh sorry, I guess I don't know my own strength! Did I just hear one of your ribs crack? You should feel honored Shibuki, you'll be the first demonstration of just how strong your old teacher has become!"

"Do you ever shut up?"

Shibuki looked back to see Lee struggling to his feet ' _This one again, huh?'_

"It's always the same thing with people like you…" Lee struggled to his feet "You think that just because you say it that makes it so, well I'm going to make you eat those words."

"You tell him… Lee…" Shibuki rasped out weakly.

"Well let's see how you like this!" Lee blitzed forward and attempted to kick Suien into the air for a Primary Lotus.

Suien blocked it with ease "It doesn't matter how many times you try and attack, you're still nothing in the face of my might!" he promptly kicked Lee into the tree, then blitzed above him and kicked him into the river.

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The kids looked on in horror "Lee… Lord Shibuki… Suien defeated them both without even trying… we're done for…"

"Speak for yourself." Sasuke got their attention "Giving up without even trying is exactly what he wants us to do."

Then Shibuki freed him "There…"

"Shibuki…"

"It's hopeless, at this rate we'll all die… and we've still got the other one over there to deal with…" he pointed to where Suika stood uncaringly on the sidelines "Take the children and escape…"

"Escape? I think I've heard that word from the occasional coward too afraid to fight, but I've never been quite sure of the meaning." he quickly formed a Thunder Clone "I'll take care of that one, you go help Lee."

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Suien let out a laugh "It's working beyond my wildest imagination, my body is overflowing with power!" then he looked down "Where did that one go?"

"Don't worry about him!"

Suien looked and saw Sasuke's clone fire off a shuriken, but he dodged it with ease "What was that?"

"A diversion!" Lee suddenly blitzed in front of him.

"Where did you come from?"

" **Leaf Whirlwind!"** Lee promptly kicked Suien into the lake "I just came up the tree, it's hollow all the way through after all."

"Lee be careful, he's still ridiculously powerful." Sasuke pointed out.

"Oh believe me I know that first hand. I guess I've just gotta power up enough to the point where I can match it." Lee got into a stance " **Eight Inner Gates: Second Gate of Rest: Open!"** he opened the second gate.

"Gotcha you little brat!" Suien suddenly blitzed behind Lee and slugged him in the face, sending him flying across the lake "So what? I'll just kill both of you!"

"I wouldn't count on it! **Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!"** Sasuke launched several small fireballs forward.

 **Water Style: Water Wall!"** Suien summoned a wall of water, putting out the flames and revealing a barrage of kunai underneath, which he quickly blocked "Young punk I wouldn't be so overconfident if I were you."

"Yeah, well it looks to me like you're the one who's being overconfident here."

"What?"

"We all know that drinking the Hero's Water makes you stronger, but the thing is that it's not the same as real strength. Just look at you, you're already out of breath."

"Shut up!" Suien sent Sasuke skidding across the lake and into the tree, dissipating the clone upon impact ' _What? How could I have not noticed it was a clone? The Hero's Water must be wearing off already. Alright then.'_ he started drinking more, increasing his level of power even further "What do you think of me now?"

"Not much. **Fourth Gate of Pain: Open!"**

Suien looked back and saw Lee standing behind him, his skin now red with a green vapor emanating from his body "What?"

"You called Shibuki weak, you said he was a coward, but he stood and fought and he protected the people of his village. He did all of that despite knowing he wasn't strong, and that my friend is what real courage is all about! But you are nothing but scum who abandoned your village, you drink your courage out of a jug of water! You think I'm scared of you? Well come at me you gutless creep, I'll show you that I don't do scared!" he burst forward and thrusted his fist forward.

Suien blocked it, but the force shattered the jug "No, the Hero's Water!"

" **Fifth Gate of Closing: OPEN!"** Lee burst forward and kicked Suien into the air, then leapt into the air himself " **HIDDEN LOTUS!"** and he slammed Suien straight in the stomach, sending him crashing down to the bottom of the waterfall, killing him upon impact. Then he landed back on the ground as the gates closed, and he collapsed in exhaustion "It's over… now all that's left is for Sasuke to wrap things up on his end."

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" **Chidori!"** Sasuke charged through the Red Spider from Suika, now sporting minor burns across his body, and thrusted it into his chest, killing him instantly "Okay, that's done." he deactivated his Sharingan.

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"So yeah, that's about it." Sasuke finished.

Tatsu nodded "I see, nice work guys."

"You couldn't pretend to be at least a little impressed?" Lee grumbled.

"I would if I didn't expect it, I knew you guys could handle someone like that no problems at all."

"...Oh." then he turned to Shibuki "So everything's okay now Shibuki, you're alright?"

"Don't worry, I'll be fine." Shibuki assured him.

"And that's the best part about the whole thing, you drank that crazy stuff and survived after all to tell the tale so if that doesn't mean you were meant to be the hero of the Hidden Waterfall Village then I don't know what does."

"I'm afraid I'm just as much of a coward as I ever was, I may not have seemed it but I was scared out of my mind the whole time."

"Well yeah, you would've had to have been out of your mind not to be. But the difference there is that you didn't let your fear stop you."

"Yeah I guess so."

"But you can't rely on the Hero's Water every time." Tatsu pointed out.

"I know, I have to get stronger on my own power before my village is attacked again. As it stands, I'd never be able to protect them."

"I think I know something that could help." Tatsu pulled a brown scroll out of his bag and handed it to Shibuki "Here."

"What is it?"

"A summoning contract that my clan hasn't used since the days of the First Hokage, the wolf summons."

"You're giving it to me?"

"I'm giving it to your village, a gift from one ally to another."

"Well if that's the case then here." Shibuki handed Tatsu a blue scroll "A jutsu created by the people of this village, the Water Slicing Blade. Think of it as payment for everything you guys have been through, and you're all welcome in the Hidden Waterfall Village anytime."

"Thank you." then Tatsu turned to the others "I think it's about time we headed back."

"Right." and they went on their way

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"And that's about it." Lee finished his story.

Naruto blinked "Okay, that only answers one of my questions. And more importantly, where the hell does Fu come into that?"

"Oh I never said I met Fu on that mission, I said I met her when I went to the Hidden Waterfall on a mission but I never said which one. See, when I met her was when Ino and I were on a joint mission with the Hidden Waterfall about a month later."

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(2 months after the original mission)

Lee stood with Shibuki outside his home in the Hidden Waterfall Village, with Ino standing right behind him "Well that ends our joint mission."

Shibuki nodded "Yes of course, thank you both for coming all the way from the Hidden Leaf Village to help us."

"Oh it's no problem, that's what allies are for right? Well we should get going."

"Actually Lee, there's one other thing I could use your help with, if you would come inside. Alone." he led Lee inside and shut the door before Ino could come in, much to her ire.

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Lee sat on the ground in front of Shibuki "Is something wrong?"

Shibuki sighed "How do I put this… How do you feel about jinchuuriki?"

"Well a very close friend of mine happens to be a jinchuuriki, so…"

"I see. Good, now I know for sure I can trust you with this." Shibuki took a long deep breath.

"You guys have a jinchuuriki don't you?"

"Yes, her name is Fu and she's like a little sister to me. The only problem is-"

"The villagers fear and despise her, she's isolating herself further and further and the way it's going you fear she'll leave the village."

"I know she'd probably be happier, but…"

"But you're worried that with a terrorist group after Tailed Beasts on the rise you're concerned for her safety."

"...Yes."

"And what exactly do you want me to do?"

Shibuki actually bowed to Lee "Please, show her that there's at least one person out there aside from me who accepts her and cares about her."

"...I'll do what I can."

"Thank you, thank you so much."

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Lee was later wandering around and stopped at the massive tree at the center of the village ' _So how am I supposed to find this girl anyway?'_ then he heard sobbing and rounded the tree, where he found a girl crying, with mint green hair and tan skin. He knelt down beside her, his voice soft and gentle "Hey, are you okay?"

"I'm fine." she got up and rubbed her bright orange eyes.

Lee suddenly found himself lost in them ' _I've gotta admit, she's cute. Really cute.'_ he then blurted out the next thing that came to his mind "You're beautiful. _Stupid, stupid, stupid!'_

The girl blushed, but then regained her composure and turned sad again "You wouldn't be calling me if you knew what I was."

"What you are?"

"Yeah, I'm a monster just like everyone says I am!"

"A monster?"

"Yeah that's right, I'm a monster. So go ahead and get it over with, shun me, attack me or throw something like everyone else!"

"...You're a jinchuuriki aren't you?"

"Yeah I'm a jinchuuriki, a monster in human form-"

Lee cut her off by grabbing her shoulders "Let me make one thing clear, you are not a monster and you never will be."

"Why are you saying that?"

"Because it would be the same as insulting a very close friend of mine."

"...This friend of yours is a jinchuuriki too?" there was hope in her voice, hope that there was someone else like her out there."

"He holds #9, what about you?"

"7."

"I see. My name is Rock Lee, what about you?"

"My name is Fu."

"Nice to meet you Fu." he gave her a grin, causing her to blush.

"You too… so did you mean what you said before, about me being beautiful I mean?"

"Well… yeah…" he tried not to look her in the eye.

Fu suddenly tackled him to the ground and hugged him "You're not so bad yourself."

"Well thanks I work out a lot-"

Fu cut him off by bringing him into a kiss "I know we just met but I'm glad I finally found someone like you, someone who accepts me."

"Yeah, I'm glad I found someone like you too." he wrapped his arms around her back.

Then she noticed the headband "You're a Leaf ninja?"

"Yeah, I was just here for a mission."

"Oh. When are you leaving?"

"In about a week, I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault, just promise that you'll be sure to come back and visit me."

"I will, I promise."

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"Over time we kept growing closer, I took any missions to the Hidden Waterfall that I could so I could get a chance to see her." Lee finished "I actually went to see her while you guys were off tracking Itachi."

"But I thought the Akatsuki had the Seven-Tails already." Naruto pointed out "So how is she still alive?"

"Well I consulted Tatsu about this and we met Kurama in Limbo about a year before you came back to see if there was a way for a jinchuuriki to survive Tailed Beast extraction. He told us that there was only one way, and that was for a small portion of Tailed Beast chakra to remain in the body after the Tailed Beast itself has been extracted. So we worked out a plan with Fu and Shibuki. That is, to have Fu transform into her full Tailed Beast state and sever one of her tails, then seal it inside her. When Kakuzu and Hidan showed up and captured her, the Seven-Tails was extracted, but the minute her body hit the ground she disappeared."

"But how?"

"Through a Reverse Summoning. We summoned her back to the home of the wolves and then back to the Hidden Waterfall, and bam, she's free of her burden."

"...Damn."

"Yeah."

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Tatsu stood with Danzo and Shibuki in the Hokage's tent "So what exactly did you want to talk about?"

Shibuki let out a loud sigh "It's about Fu."

"The Seven Tails jinchuuriki." Danzo noted.

"You mean _former_ jinchuuriki." he stressed the word former as much as he could "But compared to your jinchuuriki, Naruto Uzumaki I believe his name is, Fu has lived a horrible life. Aside from me and my father, no one in the village has ever cared about her. Everyone knows what she had sealed within her, unlike what your Third Hokage has done here. They had never been able to look past it, and they still aren't. My father, and later myself, had to privately tutor her ourselves for her to even get the training of one of your academy students. She can't even go out for a walk without being verbally and at times even physically abused. At this point the only reason she hasn't been raped is because the people are afraid she'd reproduced." he gripped his fists as he was shaking in anger "I just want to see her happy, and she won't be happy in the Hidden Waterfall."

' _A village leader should really hold his emotions in greater control.'_

"While your passion for your goal is very admirable, what exactly would make this a fair trade anyway?" asked Tatsu.

"We can use it to show our trust." Shibuki told him "If you do this for us then the Hidden Waterfall will provide full support in your rebuilding efforts, as well as offering full support in your efforts to combat the Akatsuki."

Danzo shared a look with Tatsu, then nodded "Very well."

"You have my deepest thanks." Shibuki bowed further "I give you my word, you will not regret this."

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Tatsu met up with Naruto on the Fourth Hokage's head later "Hey."

"Hey, so Fu's joining the Leaf?" asked Naruto.

"Yep."

"And she and Lee are _celebrating_ right now?"

"Most likely."

"And I'm the only one in our team without a girlfriend."

"Unless you count Sasuke's rough patch, but pretty much yeah."

Naruto grew anime depressed.

"Hey don't look so down man, you've got Hinata after all don't you?"

"Yeah, but…"

"But nothing, now go confess to her already you jackass."

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Ino had quickly gathered the girls, then immediately rounded on Hinata "Alright, spill."

Hinata immediately grew flustered "Wh-What are you talking about?"

"You and Naruto, spill."

Hinata's face went red "What?"

"Don't "What" me like that, have you even talked to the guy since he got back from training with Jiraiya?"

"Well… once when he was looking for a teammate for the Tenchi Bridge mission…"

"And?"

"I fainted…"

"Of course you did."

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(And now a segment of all of Hinata's interaction with Naruto since he returned from training)

Tatsu climbed up the wall of Naruto's apartment building and found Hinata already there, airing out his blanket "Oh hey, what are you doing here?"

Hinata grew flustered "Well I thought that it wouldn't be right if I let it get all dusty since I thought Naruto would return soon and-"

"Easy easy, I'm not accusing you. I actually had the same thing in mind, I just can't get to it very often since I'm always busy with training or missions."

"O-Oh…"

"So you wanna go get something to eat while you pour your heart out about how you're head over heels in love with Naruto to the point where you've been stalking him like every other girl does with Sasuke?"

Hinata blushed "Well I would but I was actually about to leave on a mission and I just wanted to dust a little before I left."

' _And yet she doesn't deny stalking him or having feelings for him.'_

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Later, Naruto stopped by his apartment with Sasuke "I just wanna put my stuff away before we get into this huge brawl of a test."

"Well to be fair, our opponent really isn't the brawling type." Sasuke told him.

"Yeah I know, that's more Kiba's thing but I'm really just making a point." Naruto opened the door to his apartment and was surprised to find it all sparkly and shiny "What the hell happened here? It's way cleaner than I could ever do."

"You can thank Hinata for that, ever since you left she's been cleaning your home until it sparkled every chance she got."

"Hinata?!" Naruto immediately started sniffing "Yeah, her scent is all over the place…" he then started drooling.

"Uh…"

"...Anyway, let me just put my stuff away first and then we can head over to the training grounds." he opened his bag, revealing his old jacket.

"Isn't that the outfit that you used to wear?"

"Yeah, it doesn't fit on me anymore but it's got a lot of sentimental value to me so I can't just throw it away like that."

"...I'm not sure what's more surprising, the fact that you kept that thing all this time or the fact that you know the meaning of the word sentimental."

Naruto sprouted a tic mark.

"But the point is that it's like a memento."

"It's kind of embarrassing when you put it that way. I'm not sure how secure it is in here though, you mind finding a place for it?"

"Sure, I'll do it the first chance I get. Or pawn it off on Tatsu."

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Tatsu sat with Naruto, Sasuke and Lee at Ichiraku "Okay guys, now that celebrating is out of the way we've gotta get down to business."

"The Akatsuki?" Naruto guessed.

"Other business. You and Hinata."

"Oh. That." Naruto's cheeks turned pink ' _F*ck, I was hoping to put this off for as long as I could.'_

"You've got the hots for Hinata now don't you?" he took the blood trickling down Naruto's nose as his answer "Asked and answered. So tell us, what brought this on?"

"Well after the Land of Waves mission, any sort of feelings I had for Sakura were pretty much dead, so I decided to look elsewhere, but…"

"But pretty much everyone hated you and thought you were repulsive either for Kurama or for the fact that you rarely ever brushed your teeth?"

"You swore you wouldn't tell anyone about that!" then he calmed down "Anyway, I didn't really find anyone our age I was interested in or didn't treat me like crap. I mean there was Ino but-"

"But I would've shoved a Rasengan up your ass."

"Exactly. I didn't really notice Hinata until she went up against Neji during the preliminaries, and when he almost killed her I probably would've gone Kurama on his ass if it wasn't for that seal that Orochimaru put on me. Thought of here were what spurred me on to beat Neji during the finals, and against Gaara, Kabuto and Aoi. That, and I kept having dreams about her during training that would've made Pervy Sage keel over from blood loss."

"Okay I can't listen to this anymore." Ayame cut into the conversation.

"You heard what we were talking about?"

"Every word of it and I have to say, you guys are pathetic. Sasuke here is the only one with half a brain cell when it comes to romance."

"Oh really? Well alright then sensei, let's hear your opinion on this."

"It's simple. You're head over heels for her."

"...Huh?"

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About 3 days went by.

Tatsu was in the middle of a workout, one of him against 50 Shadow Clones at once, when he saw Hinata coming up to him "Oh hey Hinata, what's up?"

"Well after Konohamaru asked me to hit him with Rotation, I heard from Lee that Naruto was back but I didn't see him when I stopped by his apartment to check." Hinata told him.

"I didn't expect you to come across him, he left on a mission about 2 days ago with Ino and Kakashi."

"He just got back and Lady Tsunade already sent him on a mission?"

"It was an emergency, they needed the strongest they could spare. From what I gather, Gaara was captured by a group of rogue ninja called the Akatsuki."

"Gaara?" Hinata recalled memories of Gaara's brutality during the Chunin Exams.

"Yeah, I'm going with Sasuke and Lee to back him up once Neji gets back from his mission. I'd offer to bring you instead but the Akatsuki are serious business."

"Actually Neji just returned a little while ago."

"Then I have no business waiting. Later Hinata." and he took off.

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After the Akatsuki mission, after Naruto met up with team 8, set at Ichiraku:

Naruto let out a groan "I'm an idiot. I'm a complete and utter idiot."

"I could've told you that." Ayame said dryly "Telling her to just come with you without saying a word is basically like saying you wanna have a quickie with her!"

"...And you know that how?"

"Not important! The point is that you can't rush stuff like that!"

"I was asking for her help with a mission, not asking her out on a date!"

"Both cases are extremely delicate!"

Teuchi and Mizuki just shared a look and sighed.

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After Tenchi Bridge:

Tatsu was thrown back by the force of his own explosion "Dammit!"

"You're really working hard here."

Tatsu looked back to see Kiba and Shino approaching him "Oh hey guys, what brings you out here?"

"We heard from Lee that you were working on a new jutsu so we thought we'd come check up on you."

"I appreciate it but I don't have time to stand around and talk, I've gotta get back to training."

"Why?"

"I've been working on this jutsu for the past 3 years and I finally decided to teach it to Naruto when I haven't even mastered it!" he slapped his face into his hands "I bought myself a little bit of time by giving him a bunch of other jutsu to master so he'd get a better grip on his wind nature, but I don't the same colossal chakra reserves he does!"

"You feel that you must master this jutsu before him." Shino guessed "This is because you worry that if he feels that he has surpassed you then his motivation will go down."

"Exactly."

"But Naruto's dream is not simply to surpass you, he dreams of becoming the Hokage and to do that he must surpass even Lady Tsunade herself. Consider that." and he walked away.

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Hinata herself was watching Naruto's Rasenshuriken training from afar ' _Naruto… you just keep aiming higher, don't you?'_

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Later, after Hayate was killed by Hidan and Kakuzu:

Tsunade hung her head when she'd heard what had happened "I see…"

"Milady, what about Yugao?" asked Mizuki "Who will tell her?"

Tsunade let out a long sigh "Notify everyone else regarding the funeral services, I will personally inform Yugao-"

"No." Tatsu cut her off "I'll do it. I'd like to tell her myself. I have a message for her from Hayate-sensei."

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"I saw it…" Hinata murmured "I saw what Naruto was training for, he's working on an incredible jutsu that will be his and his alone."

"That technically isn't true." Shino pointed out "After all, Tatsu will most likely master this jutsu before Naruto will."

"Yes, but-"

"Guys."

Hinata looked to see Shikamaru drop down in front of them, his face looking grim "Shikamaru."

"I'm bringing a message from Lady Hokage."

"What happened?" asked Kiba.

"I was on a mission to find and eliminate two of the Akatsuki." Shikamaru breathed out a long, deep sigh "Hayate-sensei… was killed in battle."

All three of them froze.

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The day of the funeral came.

Yugao placed some flowers on Hayate's grave.

Naruto stood by Ino and Lee, looking around for Tatsu but not seeing any sign of his presence in the area.

Hinata looked at Naruto as she stood with her team, noticing him firmly staring forward and refusing to shed a tear ' _I see… Naruto… you've already decided haven't you? But even now… I still…'_

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After the funeral, Hinata quickly got changed and headed out "Let's go."

"Hold on a minute Hinata, where are you going?" asked Kiba.

"I'm going to train."

"But Hinata, if you're thinking about trying to avenge Hayate-sensei-"

"I know. I know right now I don't stand a chance of even surviving against the Akatsuki. But even despite this tragedy, Naruto continues to train. He's most likely perfecting his new jutsu as we speak. I don't want to stay behind him any longer than I have to." and she walked off, with Shino and Kiba following.

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After Naruto leaves to train at Mount Myoboku:

Tatsu heard a knock at his door and found Hinata standing there "Oh good you're here, glad you could make it."

"Sasuke said you wanted to see me?" asked Hinata.

"Yeah I did. Come with me, there's something I need you to do."

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Tatsu led Hinata to Naruto's apartment and pulled a certain object out "And this is what I need from you."

Hinata was quick to recognize it "This is…"

"Sasuke pawned this off on me after the thing with the Akatsuki and Gaara, I'm supposed to find somewhere safe to put this thing where it won't be damaged. I think you're best suited for that."

Hinata accepted it "But…"

"And don't bother trying to check it for his scent, the thing has been washed."

"Why would I-?"

"It's clearly some kind of fetish you both have, from what Sasuke tells me he did the same thing to his entire apartment when he found out you cleaned it before he got back."

Hinata's face went red.

(And that's all of them)

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Tatsu let out a groan "You're even more hopeless than I thought you were."

"Don't remind me." Naruto grumbled.

"That's understating it."

Naruto looked back and saw Yahiko join them "Hey."

"Apparently Konan is getting together with the girls and getting their side of the story. You both suck at this."

"Tell me about it."

"Um… Naruto…" a meek voice called.

Naruto looked back to see Hinata standing there, looking timid "Hinata… hey. What's up?

"Um… well… there's something that I wanted to show you…" she motioned for him to follow her "If you could just come with me for a minute."

"Alright…"

"Okay…" she walked off, with Naruto following.

Tatsu and Yahiko shared a look and reached a single conclusion "They're so gonna get together."

Then Tatsu paused "Oh crap."

"What's wrong?" asked Yahiko.

"I can sense Neji close by, he's gonna try and ruin it."

"Then he shall be stopped!" Yahiko got into the Jiraiya stance "In the name of all that is pure, he shall be thwarted before this treacherous scheme comes to fruition!" he looked around but realized that Tatsu was gone "Where'd he go?"

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Naruto was rather thrown off to find that Hinata had brought him to the evacuation center above the Hokage Monument "I don't understand Hinata, why did you bring me to the evacuation shelter? What's so important here that you needed me to see?"

"Just a little further." Hinata led Naruto inside and down the stairs to the storage area.

"I still don't get it, what exactly are we doing in here?"

"Here." Hinata knelt down in and pulled out a large box "This is the storage space that's used by the Hyuga clan." she opened it, revealing what was inside.

Naruto's eyes nearly bulged out of his head when he realized what was inside "This is my old jacket… Hinata, you saved this for me?"

"Tatsu asked me to find somewhere to put this for you, it's your treasure after all and I thought you'd be sad if anything happened to it."

"Hinata… you really are awesome." Naruto wrapped his arms around her and quickly caught her in a hug.

Hinata's face instantly turned red ' _He's hugging me… Naruto's hugging me…'_

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Neji was watching from afar, and he had started foaming at the mouth when he saw Naruto hug Hinata ' _That idiot would dare to lay his hands on Lady Hinata? I must stop this!'_ he activated his Byakugan " **8 Trigrams-"**

"Boot to the head!" Tatsu suddenly appeared and kicked Neji in the face, sending him tumbling back.

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Naruto released Hinata from the hug, looking deadly serious "Hinata, there's something I need to tell you."

Hinata's face turned even redder "O-Okay…"

Naruto took a deep breath ' _No going back now._ Listen Hinata, when I thought that Pain had killed you I was practically losing my mind. I actually _did_ lose my mind when you think about it."

"Yes…"

"Anyway, I was losing my mind at the thought of never seeing you again. That was when I realized… I love you too Hinata, I just wish I'd realized it before so I didn't waste as much time as I did on Sakura." and he leaned in and kissed her.

Hinata felt steam coming out of her ears, her face turning bright red, but she eagerly returned the kiss once she processed what was happening.

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"YES!" Tatsu gave Yahiko a high five.

"NO!" Neji screamed from where he was pinned to the ground beneath Tatsu, anime tears running down his face from unyielding horror.

 **A/N:**

 **I figured not including any characters from the Hidden Waterfall would only be wasting their potential.**

 **As for Shibuki's Sage Mode, think the markings when Inuyasha goes full demon mode.**

 **I figured pairing Lee with Fu because, well why not?**

 **Suika is from Shippuden episode 236, I added him because, again, why not?**

 **I added the Naruto and Hinata stuff in because I wanted to get it up to a 10k word count.**

 **I had to add in the "Boot to the head" thing, I just couldn't resist. For those who don't understand, look it up on YouTube.**


	22. The Five Kage Summit, Sakura's Invasion

Tatsu stood in front of Naruto, Sasuke, Lee, Hinata, Kin, Fu and Ino in one of the spare tents, a marker in one hand as a whiteboard stood next to him "Okay, let's go over the facts." he pointed to a picture of Tobi "We've still got this guy to deal with who we know very little to absolutely nothing about since he wasn't among the members in the book Kabuto gave us before, and from what Naruto and Lee say apparently he had a role in Kurama attacking the Hidden Leaf 16 years ago." then he pointed a picture of Zetsu "We've also got this one to deal with, he was in the book from Kabuto but even he had little to nothing on this guy." he then pointed to the picture of Kisame "Lastly is Kisame Hoshigaki, who Lee's fought twice before. It was only about 30% of his power and it still too six of the Eight Gates to beat him, not to mention that both he and his sword Samehada are able to absorb chakra. He's a handful."

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At the same time, three Hidden Cloud ninja by the name of Samui, Omoi and Karui arrived in the Hidden Leaf with a message for Tsunade from the Raikage.

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Samui's eyes shot wide at what she heard "What's that? Lady Hokage is comatose?"

Shizune nodded "Yes but I'm her aid, so I can simply accept the letter on her behalf."

"If it's uncertain when she'll regain consciousness then the acting Hokage will do, I'd like to have the letter read and replied to. I cannot keep the Raikage waiting."

"I will answer it."

Samui looked back to see Danzo enter, with Shisui and Kazuma right behind him, and her eyes narrowed ' _Those two are…'_

"I am currently acting as Hokage in her place, now if you would hand that letter to me I shall answer it."

"...Very well." Samui slowly handed him the letter.

Danzo accepted it and read it, and his lone eye narrowed ' _I see, so that's what this situation has turned into.'_

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"Guys!"

Tatsu looked up to see Kiba and Neji burst into the tent "Calm down you two, now what's got you both so worked up?"

"Listen and just stay calm alright? From what I gather, messengers from the Hidden Cloud showed up a few hours ago."

Tatsu noticed Neji and Hinata looking agitated "And what exactly would the Hidden Cloud want with us after everything that's happened between our villages?"

"I don't know the details but apparently a rogue ninja from our village joined up with the Akatsuki about 2 or 3 years ago and did some damage to some Hidden Cloud ninja."

"Well if someone from this village crossed a Hidden Cloud ninja then I doubt someone as stubborn as the Raikage will just let it slide."

"So what's the Raikage like anyway?" asked Naruto.

"He's basically the definition of a muscle bound jackass who thinks more with his muscles than his head, and he's a hell of a lot more stubborn than you are. Anyway, standard operating procedure for a rogue ninja is to erase them before they become an even bigger problem, like the Third should've done with Orochimaru to begin with. Who is it anyway?"

"I don't know, I'm just telling you what I've heard so far."

"Well first thing we've gotta do is get some answers."

"That's what we need too."

Tatsu looked and saw Karui and Omoi barging into the tent after Neji and Kiba "Hey I don't know who guys think you are but you can't just barge into people's tents like that. _I can tell from their headbands and chakra levels that they're chunin from the Hidden Cloud._ What exactly do you two want with us?"

Omoi stepped forward next "We just overheard you guys talking about one of your ninja who joined the Akatsuki, we wanna know about her and you guys are gonna tell us what we wanna know about her."

"Why should we? And who the hell are you talking about?"

"A former genin of the Hidden Leaf, and her name is… Sakura Haruno."

This was when Sasuke and Naruto bolted up "Wait wait wait, _Sakura_ of all people attacked the Hidden Cloud Village?"

"You're damn right!" Karui pointed a sword "Your rogue kunoichi kidnapped our beloved master Killer B! We don't even know if he's dead or alive!"

"Hold on a minute." Tatsu cut in "Why the hell would Sakura want to capture your master?"

Omoi scoffed "How the hell should we know the motives of the Akatsuki?"

"...What?"

Karui growled "You guys are trying my patience, of course Sakura is a member of the Akatsuki! It's because we let your rogue ninja run loose that Lord Raikage dispatches us here! We've already gotten the permission from your Hokage to get rid of her!"

Naruto was left dumbstruck by this ' _Sakura… she joined the Akatsuki? She kidnapped one of the jinchuuriki?'_

"We will avenge our master, we're going to take Sakura down ourselves!"

' _Sakura… I don't understand, how far could you have possibly fallen?'_

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The pink haired masked figure stopped when she noticed something "You…"

Tobi, or Madara as he should now be called, appeared in front of her "You don't have to hide your face behind that mask, it's just us here… Sakura."

"...Fine." the figure removed her mask, revealing Sakura "How the hell did you know where I was anyway?"

"Do not take me lightly, I have powers beyond your comprehension."

"So what exactly do you want from me anyway? I've paid my debt to the Akatsuki for freeing me from that prison by delivering the Eight Tails to you, I have no further business with you."

"I warned you that you would die if you betrayed the Akatsuki."

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about the hunt for the Tailed Beasts."

"But I already handed the Eight Tails over to you like you asked me to."

"That was nothing more than a substitution. In short, you blundered. It seems the Eight Tails pulled a fast one on you."

' _I watched him the entire time, when could he have-? Of course, one of the tails was cut off during the fight.'_

"Honestly, you have greatly disappointed me."

"So what do you want me to do about it? It's not like it's my business anymore."

"That's where you're wrong, you will complete the job you've been assigned when you're with the Akatsuki. Having said that you can forget about the Eight Tails, I have Kisame trailing him as we speak. I have decided to have you carry out a different mission."

"And what if I refuse?"

"Then we'll fight it out right here, and you won't be able to go to the Hidden Leaf Village."

"Then I'll just push through you." lightning crackled in Sakura's hand as she charged, but only phased through Madara ' _What?!'_

"It's a little too late to go to the Hidden Leaf anyway."

' _I passed right through him like he wasn't even there, is this one of his abilities?'_

"Your objective seems so futile now, it's sad really."

"And what is that supposed to mean?"

"It means that Village Hidden in the Leaves has already been destroyed."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

Then Zetsu popped up " **I can explain everything that happened at the Hidden Leaf."**

"Oh great, Zetsu."

"Relax, he won't bite you." Madara resisted the urge to roll his eye "So then, who's the new Hokage?"

"It's that fellow Danzo." Zetsu told him.

"Just as I anticipated."

" **And there's more, it appears that Kazuma Kamikaze and Shisui Uchiha are both still alive."**

"...I see."

"Wait a minute." Sakura demanded "Just what the hell happened in the Hidden Leaf Village?"

"Pain and Konan went to the Hidden Leaf Village and completely destroyed it, but thanks to you and Pain showing off it seems that now the Five Kage are going to take action."

"The Five Kage?"

"Along with Shibuki of the Hidden Waterfall, they're convening a summit conference in the Land of Iron."

"I see."

"Allow me, I'll explain it all." Zetsu offered.

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Karui aimed her sword "Now tell us everything you know about Sakura and I don't mean just her ninjutsu style and her abilities, but also any data you've collected about her companions and about the Akatsuki, and information about their past activities too."

"Hold on a minute." Naruto finally cut in "Are you sure it was Sakura Haruno?"

"Pink hair, Haruno crest, her face matched the list according to the intel we gathered from the Chunin exams three years ago." Omoi told him "We found it hard to believe it was the same person, someone so pathetic she went down in one average levelled punch to taking down our master."

"Hold on a minute." Tatsu cut in.

Karui growled "Are you serious?"

"Just listen to me. When the order to take Sakura down was approved any intel the Leaf has on her should have been handed over to you and your companions right away, you don't have to pressure these two so just leave them alone."

"Yeah I know and you're right, our captain is busy waiting for the information right now. But we just figured that we'd try to get any additional information from anyone who might know something, that's all."

"...By barging into random tents and barking out your demands like a pack of angry dogs?"

"We can't sit and do nothing, not when our master is gone. We don't even know what happened to him."

Naruto recalled his memories of Jiraiya and his memories of how he felt when he learned that Pain had killed him ' _Pervy Sage…'_

"Then again, outsiders like you guys probably have no idea what we're going through right now."

"Tell me something." his voice was soft "Your master, he's a jinchuuriki isn't he?"

That took them by surprise "How did you know that?"

"Because I'm a jinchuuriki too, the Akatsuki have been hunting all of us for the Tailed Beasts inside of us. I'm not any kind of outsider, the Akatsuki always capture a jinchuuriki alive so that means that your master may still be alive right now."

"What? Are you serious?"

"Yeah but just forget about Sakura, you guys need to hurry and go rescue your master first."

"Are you sure about this, like really really sure?" then she grinned "I told you didn't I Omoi? There's no way our master would die as easily as that."

"Tell you what, my team and I will come along and do what we can to help you rescue him. We'll give you whatever intel we've got on the Akatsuki."

"Hey you know what blondie? You're a lot sharper than you look. Come along with us and bring your friends, and tell us all about Sakura. So then, what's your name anyway?"

"My name is Naruto Uzumaki, my teammates are Tatsu Kamikaze, Rock Lee and Sasuke Uchiha."

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Sakura looked at Madara with a mix of disdain and disbelief "You really expect me to believe that someone like _Naruto_ defeated someone as strong as Pain?"

Zetsu nodded "That's right, his power has grown to heights well beyond any ordinary sort of shinobi. In fact, I think he's stronger than you right now."

"I couldn't care less about that trash, but the real problem here is this Five Kage Summit. But the Leaf Village is gone now, so there's only one thing I can do at the moment. I will take the head of the Hokage at the summit, then burn the remains of the Leaf to the ground and kill all who stand in my way, starting with Naruto.

"Sounds like a plan." Madara noted.

"So how am I supposed to get to the summit?"

"Zetsu."

"What?"

"My clone will guide you there." Zetsu then literally split himself in half, one white half and one black half "Okay, follow me." and he took off.

Sakura followed him ' _I'll keep an eye on these guys for now, if anything seems suspicious then I'll use_ _ **that**_ _jutsu and wipe them from the face of the earth.'_

Madara watched Sakura depart "And there she goes."

" **Things are going well."** Black Zetsu noted.

"Well I never thought that Nagato would use the Gedo Art of Rinne Rebirth that he had developed for me, and for such a thing as _that?_ I can't believe he would betray me the way he did, even in the unlikely Sakura becomes more powerful than Nagato there's no point in it if we can't control him. I have no intention of trying to link her to the Gedo Statue anytime soon, especially if she doesn't even possess the Sharingan. It's wiser to just keep an eye on her."

" **I can't believe you foresaw the possibility that Nagato would die."**

"As a precaution, but we've definitely fallen off of my ideal path thanks to Naruto Uzumaki. He and the others."

" **Tatsu Kamikaze, Rock Lee and Sasuke Uchiha."**

"Yes, they've caused all of our well laid plans to shift with their actions."

" **What's next then? Do we go as well?"**

"We're done with moving ahead cautiously, put a rush on Project Tsuki no Me."

" **Right."**

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Karui slammed Naruto against a wall "Alright, come on. Let's hear everything you know about this Sakura girl."

Naruto just looked down ' _Sakura…'_

"Tell us everything you know, anything you can about her."

Nothing.

"What's the matter?"

"...I'm sorry, but I can't. Even after all that Sakura has put me through, put all of my friends through, I just don't have it in me to sell her out."

Karui tightened her grip "Quit playing around, you can't take it back after all of that!"

' _I know I should hate her, want her to die after all the suffering I've endured because of her, but…'_

"Well come on, say something!"

' _Being a shinobi means that I have to overcome my hatred, and all of us have to battle against that hatred._ Look, I know that I'm being selfish, but I just don't have it in me to sell her out like that."

"Why you son of a-!"

"I get your need for vengeance, believe me I do, but if you guys have Sakura enough to kill her then my friends won't just sit back and accept what happened. It will just be an eye for an eye, and the vicious Cycle of Hatred will start all over again. People you love will keep killing each other."

"Yeah whatever, your Sakura is the one who started it all so I don't care! We _are_ going to kill him!"

"I know, but…"

"Well? Just where do you suggest that we take our hatred then?" asked Omoi "I mean, what could you do about that?"

"You guys can take your anger and hatred out on me instead, get it all out. I offer myself."

"Fine by me!" Karui promptly slugged him "Look kid, just get off your high horse! Alright then, let's test your little theory out and see if I can really get my feelings out, how's that?" she began punching him repeatedly.

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Samui was wandering around looking for her teammates "How far did Omoi and Karui have to go to gather intel? We're in foreign territory, I hope they're not causing trouble." she looked around at the people and the destruction ' _But all of this damage to the Hidden Leaf Village, who could've stopped a foe powerful enough to do this?'_

"It's horrible isn't it?"

Samui looked and saw Izumi walk up to her "Yes, no matter what the village no one should have to suffer this sort of thing. But I have to ask, who could have stopped someone capable of doing this of all things?"

"That would be Naruto Uzumaki and Rock Lee, students of Kakashi Hatake and Might Guy respectively."

"I see. But who could be capable of something like this though?"

"That would be Pain, the supposed leader of the Akatsuki that bore the eyes of the god of this world. The Rinnegan."

Samui nearly froze "...I see."

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Danzo stood and emerged from the Hokage's tent "Now I must make preparations for my departure to the Five Kage Summit."

"What's your plan then?" asked Kazuma.

"A Kage can only bring two retainers to the summit, unless in special cases."

"So you plan to bring Torune and Fu? After all, they are the most skilled out of everyone from the Foundation."

"Yes, and that is why I'm trusting them with taking care of things in my absence. Instead, my escorts shall be you and Shisui. Be sure to inform him."

"What are we allowed in terms of armament?"

"Don't concern yourself with any limitations, I trust your discretion abilities."

"Very well." then Kazuma departed to inform Shisui.

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Karui was panting heavily after beating on Naruto for as long as she did "You bastard… Listen to me, no amount of pummeling will make me feel better, but I'm gonna keep going as long as it takes for you to spill about Sakura!" she aimed another fist.

That is, before Tatsu appeared and blocked it "That's enough."

"Look don't interfere girl, he was the one who asked for this all on his own."

"She's right Tats, just let me handle this." Naruto insisted.

"Naruto, there's no need for you to let yourself be a punching bag." Tatsu told him "Not on the behalf of Sakura."

"I know, but it's my choice."

"...Sakura has done nothing but cause you pain. If I were you…"

"If you interfere then I'll pummel you too!" Karui let a fist fly.

Then Omoi caught her fist "That's enough Karui, knocking these guys around anymore isn't going to get us anywhere. I know I'm right and you know I'm right."

Karui just retracted her fist and turned away.

"You know you could cut him some slack, he did promise to help rescue Lord Killer B."

"Oh yeah? What, and you're not gonna question him like if he really means it like you usually do? You're usually so obsessive and compulsive."

"Even if he is a foe, I like this guy. He's someone who would never sell out someone he considers a comrade. Real men don't choose their words lightly. Even if you beat him, he just won't betray Sakura. He's the type who will never go back on his word."

"Hey." then Samui appeared.

"Captain Samui."

"Omoi, Karui, how goes the intel gathering?" then she noticed the condition that Naruto was in from his beating "The two of you haven't been causing any trouble now have you?" she noticed how scared Karui looked ' _That's a yes.'_

"Look, nevermind that right now. Lord Killer B may still be alive, we have to save him. Listen to me, we're gonna have to track down all of the Akatsuki hideouts."

"And then what? We can't go in there alone, these people captured Lord Killer B. you're suggesting we check out the who knows how many Akatsuki hideouts one by one? We need intel, we need analysis first. We mustn't repeat the errors we made that time with Yugito. We'll just take the data from the Hidden Leaf directly to Lord Raikage, especially since there's so much of it."

"H-Hey…" Naruto staggered to his feet "Take me with you… if there's anything I can do… I want to help you guys rescue your jinchuuriki… and there's something… I need to talk to the Raikage about…"

"Talk to Lord Raikage?" Samui studied him intently ' _So this child must be Naruto Uzumaki, one of the ones everyone in this village is talking about._ I'm afraid that's impossible, you're an unknown entity, and right now Lord Raikage is on the road under minimal guard. Karui, Omoi, let's go. We're approved to inspect the intel on Sakura and the Akatsuki. It's going to take time to copy it all, so I need you two to help me." and she took off.

"Tatsu…"

"I'm here." Tatsu helped Naruto to his feet "What's up?"

"Please take me to Kakashi-sensei and the others…"

"Sure, but I need to ask you something first."

"Alright…"

"Why are you defending Sakura, especially after everything she's put you through? Don't tell me you still have feelings for her, we are _not_ going through that again."

"No, it's not that… I just… there are some things I need to say to her… things I need to get off my chest…"

"Naruto…"

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Sasuke was later helping to patch up Naruto's wounds "You really oughta have Ino or Shizune treat these wounds."

"No, it's fine." Naruto's voice was soft, barely a whisper "Plus if Ino sees me like this then it will only cause more trouble. Besides, I heal fast and Kurama helps with that. I'll be okay in no time, a day or two max."

"Maybe, but you shouldn't take risks like that." Tatsu pointed out "Even for you, and especially not for someone like Sakura."

"Yeah, I know… Hey Tatsu, about before. Thanks."

"...No problem, that's what friends are for after all."

"Yeah…"

"Boy, they really worked you over." Kakashi commented.

"Don't remind me…" then he winced.

"Look, you need to take it easy for a little bit."

"No, I can't afford to. I'm going to see the Raikage."

"Naruto that's insane, the Five Kage Summit starts in less than a week." Tatsu pointed out "All of the villages have agreed to travel restrictions and no unnecessary missions. What could you possibly hope to accomplish with someone like the Raikage?"

"I'm gonna ask him to let me deal with Sakura alone…"

"It's more than that, you know about Kurama's seal and the whole darkness and hatred taking over shtick. You sprouted 8 tails during that last fight, we're just lucky the sealing formula triggered in time but you still lost the necklace Tsunade gave you, so what about next time?"

"...Bushy Brow and I met the Fourth Hokage, the one who stopped me from fully transforming into Kurama was the Fourth Hokage. He said he stored some of his own chakra within my seal, and that's when the Fourth Hokage told me that Kurama attacking the Hidden Leaf 16 years ago was caused by the Akatsuki guy with the mask. He's so strong that even the Fourth Hokage struggled against him. He said that the masked one is pulling the strings behind the Akatsuki, he was probably just using Pain and Konan the whole time too. If Sakura has joined the Akatsuki then that means that this masked guy is using Sakura too."

"...Madara Uchiha."

"Huh?"

"Madara Uchiha is the only Uchiha with a grudge against the Hidden Leaf, the ability to summon Kurama at will, and a Sharingan powerful enough to control Kurama is one of the Hidden Leaf's founders, Madara Uchiha. I met the Fourth Hokage in Limbo about three years ago." all eyes were on him "He told me that Madara was responsible for the attack and that he would try again to get Naruto, and he asked me to protect him."

' _Madara…_ He's seriously a founder?"

"Yeah, he fought the First Hokage almost 100 years ago in what we now know as the Final Valley. He lost that battle and was never seen again."

"This intel needs to be reported to the council right away." Kakashi pointed out.

"I'll go tell Danzo right away, but first…" he turned back to Naruto "Tell me something, what else did the Fourth Hokage say to you?"

Naruto blinked "Huh?"

Kakashi thought back to his conversation with his father "Fathers tend to have a lot they want to tell their sons."

"...Well there was one other thing he said, he told me that he believed in me."

Kakashi gave a thumbs up "Good. Naruto, you go to the Raikage. I'll tag along as your escort, and since Yamato's in charge of rebuilding the village I'll see if I can get Asuma to come in his place."

"But we've still got another problem to deal with." Sasuke pointed out.

Tatsu knew what he was talking about "You mean Hotaru and Utakata."

"Yeah."

"Who's Utakata?" asked Naruto.

"He's the only jinchuriki aside from you and this Killer B guy who hasn't been captured by the Akatsuki, and he's the jinchuuriki of the Six Tails. We saved him and his apprentice Hotaru, the granddaughter of En no Gyoja, and we've been keeping them hidden at Mount Hisho, the home of my summoning hawks. What should we do about that?"

Tatsu thought for a moment "Okay, here's how I think we should proceed with this plan. Naruto will go with Kakashi and Asuma to meet with the Raikage and ask him to let Naruto deal with Sakura by himself, while Sasuke and I go meet with the Mizukage and inform her about the situation with Utakata."

"Agreed." Kakashi put in his opinion "By the way, it turns out the Hidden Waterfall is participating in this summit as well."

"What? Why?"

"Apparently Lord Shibuki is presiding over the summit alongside the general of the Land of Iron."

"Oh good, so we can count on Shibuki to help us out."

"Probably, but he does have to remain professional as a village leader so we can't keep our hopes up."

"True."

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At the same time, Gaara, the Kazekage, Ohnoki, the Tsuchikage, Mei, the Mizukage, A, the Raikage, and Shibuki were all preparing to depart for the Five Kage Summit, each of them in their own way.

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Kazuma was the first one to notice that he and the others were being watched "Lord Danzo sir."

"I know." Danzo was the first one to stop "I haven't seen battle in quite some time, this is a perfect chance to get my muscles limbered up again. I won't make the same mistakes I made with pain." he lifted his bandages, revealing a Sharingan in his right eye "Do not interfere, I will take care of them myself."

Several masked figures charged from the trees.

Danzo formed several hand seals " **Wind Style: Vacuum Blast!"** he breathed out a blade of wind that slashed through the figures, causing them to fall to the ground.

One of them fell at Danzo's feet "Dammit…"

Danzo held up the figure's sword "Is your target the Hokage or are you after me personally?"

"Please… just kill me…"

"Very well." Danzo then stabbed him, then used the body to shield himself against a barrage of kunai ' _7… 8… 9… 10… 17 in total then?'_

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Naruto strapped on his headband "Okay, I'm ready to go."

Tatsu strapped the Dragon Blade to his back as he adjusted his jonin vest "And so am I. Be honest with me though Naruto, are you serious about going to meet the Raikage?"

"Of course I am, I'm gonna convince him to let me take care of Sakura myself."

"You're not gonna use my forbidden Talk Jutsu on her and make her come back are you?"

"No, if she's gone so far as to join the Akatsuki then she's too far gone to be reasoned with. But…"

"But what?"

"I need to tell her a few things, and I want to be the one to take her down, to bring things full circle."

"But that being said, you don't even know where to find the Raikage, and I can't come with you guys."

"That's why we're bringing Hinata."

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Danzo finished off the last of the attackers ' _And that's the end of that.'_

"These are remnants of the Hannya Black Ops from the Land of Woods." Kazuma noted "We slew them in the past after they betrayed us 9 years ago."

"It has always been like this, foes seizing a chance to strike."

"You coming out into the open like this may increase the number of headaches along the way in a lot of ways." Shisui pointed out.

"Ninja once belonged to a world of aesthetics, to be nameless was a source of pride. By controlling what is seen as well as what is hidden, one can truly strengthen both village and nation. We must make sure that the proper measures are taken so the great villages are able to counter the Akatsuki effectively and we can earn their trust. Then I will make sure I am acknowledged as Hokage, and then even the Jonin Council will have no choice but to accept me. Now then, let's keep going."

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Sakura was following White Zetsu towards the Land of Iron "How much longer?"

"The Land of Iron is just a stone's throw away from here." White Zetsu told her.

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Tatsu led his group alongside Naruto's group until they reached the Land of Iron "We've reached the Land of Iron, from here we'll split up. I can sense the Hidden Cloud group east of here and the Mizukage's group going west. We'll meet up later once our objectives have been completed. Agreed?"

"Agreed." then Kakashi led Asuma, Naruto and Hinata to the east.

"Alright, let's go." Tatsu led Sasuke to the west.

"Tatsu." Sasuke spoke up.

"What's up?"

"About Sakura…"

"I spoke with Naruto about this before, he plans to end Sakura himself."

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Sakura was waiting for White Zetsu to give her feedback "Well?"

"They've fortified their defences because of the Five Kage Summit." White Zetsu told her.

"Scout out and find the most open route to the sight of the summit."

"I already have, there's a route climbing up from the west without too many lookouts."

"Alright then Zetsu, next I'll need you to confirm which one is the Hokage. Once he falls, taking my revenge on the Leaf will be easy."

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Mifune, the general of the Land of Iron, was quick to meet Shibuki and his escorts outside the site of the summit "We've been awaiting your arrival sir, welcome. I am Mifune, the general of the Land of Iron."

Shibuki bowed, still shivering "I am honored to meet you Lord Mifune, I am Shibuki of the Hidden Waterfall Village, here to preside over the summit."

"Are you alright? Your face is blue."

"Oh I'm fine, I've just never been very well adjusted to colder climates."

"We can serve you some hot tea to warm you up inside, please enter."

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Ao was quick to recognize that they were being followed ' _This is…'_

"What is it Ao?" asked Mei.

"My lady, we're being followed."

"What?" Mei stopped, with the rest following "Show yourself."

Then Tatsu appeared with Sasuke and the others "Please calm yourself Lady Mizukage, I bear you no ill will. I am Tatsu Kamikaze, a jonin of the Hidden Leaf Village."

"Has your Hokage sent you here?"

"No ma'am, we've merely come to deliver to you some critical information in regards to the Akatsuki."

"Don't you think this is a bit rude?" Ao pointed out "To interrupt us on the way to the summit without any sort of prior notice at all?"

"Ao." Mei gave him her typical sickly sweet smile "Shut up or I'll kill you."

"...Yes milady."

Then Mei turned back to Tatsu "I'm well aware of who you are Tatsu, your feats have been made well known in the Hidden Mist Village."

Tatsu blinked "What feats?"

"Defeating Zabuza Momochi in one on one combat at age 14, fighting off Orochimaru, defeating the jinchuuriki of the One Tailed Shukaku, killing the last survivor of the Kaguya clan, claiming the Dragon Blade from Mount Koryu as your own. You really are quite impressive."

"Oh, well thank you but I haven't come here for praise. Like I said, I came here on business."

"And what business would that be?"

Sasuke stepped forward and held out a scroll "The current location of the jinchuuriki of the Six Tails."

Mei's eyes widened "You've located Utakata?"

"Several months ago I saved him and his apprentice when they were being attacked by the Akatsuki, to prevent them from attacking him again I hid them both at Mount Hisho, home of the summoning hawks. I've already negotiated with him, he has agreed to return to the Hidden Mist, at least until the Akatsuki are dealt with."

"I see." Mei bowed her head "You have my deepest thanks."

"...So what now?"

"I honestly didn't plan this far ahead." Tatsu admitted.

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Sakura was on the lookout inside the summit venue, searching for Danzo "Which one is it?"

"That's him." White Zetsu pointed "The geezer in the middle."

Sakura's eyes narrowed furiously ' _That's the Hokage… all I need to do is get rid of him, then killing Naruto will be that much easier.'_

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The summit had begun.

Mifune sat in the center, with Shibuki sitting right beside him "Please place your Kage head pieces before you."

They did so.

"You, the Five Kage, have assembled here today in response to the summon sent out by Lord Raikage. I, Mifune, alongside Lord Shibuki of the Hidden Waterfall, shall preside over these proceedings. And now, let the Five Kage Summit commence."

"Then allow me to begin." Gaara spoke first "Listen…"

Onoki grinned "My my, how the Kage have changed. To be named Kage at your young age is quite impressive Lord Kazekage, yet despite your father's obviously brilliant guidance he seems to have not taught you any sort of edicate."

"Yes, you're most likely correct Lord Tsuchikage. However, that is why I have been chosen as the Kazekage."

Onoki burst out laughing "You cheeky young rascal!"

"Lord Tsuchikage." Mei spoke up "Please don't interrupt anymore, please continue Lord Kazekage."

Gaara nodded "Thank you. As I was saying, I myself happen to be a former jinchuuriki. The Akatsuki captured me and extracted the One Tail Shukaku from me, and that is why I consider the Akatsuki to be an extremely dangerous group. I sought the aid of the Five Kage numerous times, but each time I was ignored, with the exception of the previous Hokage. Jinchuuriki from all of your nations have been taken, as well as the Hidden Waterfall Village, and yet to collaborate at this point is simply too little too late."

Onoki grunted "The Five Great Nations' Hidden Villages can't afford to alert others that their jinchuriki were taken, it's nothing but an embarrassment. Covert rescue and recovery is the norm, no one seeks aid from other lands when jinchuriki disappear."

"Appearances, head status, such foolish and outdated concepts."

' _How dare that stripling!'_

"Setting aside whether those beliefs are outdated or not, I will acknowledge that as Mizukage I refrain from acting on this issue." Mei confessed "However, I don't believe that our Tailed Beasts being stolen is cause for immediate alarm. After all, it still takes significant skill, knowledge and time to achieve control over them."

"A jinchuriki needs to mature along with their Tailed Beast to adapt to it, and even then control remains difficult. It isn't a simple task, wouldn't you agree with that Lord Kazekage?"

Gaara said nothing.

"Very few have achieved control over Tailed Beasts." Danzo pointed out "Among those few are Madara Uchiha, the First Hokage Hashirama Senju, and of course the Fourth Mizukage Yagura Karatachi, as well as Killer B, the younger brother of Lord Raikage."

"Enough of this nonsense!" A slammed his arm down, crushing the table beneath him, prompting the aids to the Kage, minus Shisui and Kazuma, to get in defensive positions against Darui and Cee.

Shibuki sighed "This summit is a place of discourse, so if you would all please refrain from any more hostile behavior."

The Kage quickly called off their aids, who retreated into the back.

"Now let's continue our discussion."

"All of you." A spoke "The Hidden Leaf, the Stone, the Sand, the Mist, even the Waterfall, the membership of the Akatsuki is composed of rogue shinobi from your villages. That isn't all either, from our investigations we know that among you and the earlier Kage there are those who have even used the Akatsuki."

Gaara was taken by surprise by this "The Kage used them?"

"And that is the main reason why I don't trust any of you, I have no interest in any sort of discourse. But the reason why I've summoned all of you to this summit is to ultimately question your loyalties."

"What do you mean that they've used the Akatsuki?"

"You're the Kazekage and yet you don't know anything about this? Just ask your village elders back home, you of the Hidden Sand have previously used the Akatsuki in battle!"

"Currently, all of the Five Great Nations are equally stable." Onoki pointed out "They're moving from military expansion to disarmament. As strained relations between nations ease and the threat of war diminishes, Hidden Villages considered military powers by their nation merely become costly hindrances, and yet at the same time completely eliminating such villages poses its own risks as well. What if war suddenly breaks out? Relying on ninja with no battle experience would be problematic, you'd lose the battle without question."

"The Kage would realize that one way to avoid that risk is to use mercenary soldiers, namely soldiers from the Akatsuki." Gaara realized.

"It takes effort and money to cultivate accomplished ninja from within one's own hidden village, the Akatsuki makes war its livelihood and is made up of experienced professionals. Furthermore hiring them is really quite cheap, and best of all their soldiers have always delivered superior results."

"Tsuchikage, don't be so pompous." A let out a scoff "The Hidden Sand once used the Akatsuki to try and destroy the Hidden Leaf. I'm talking about Orochimaru, though he may have already left the Akatsuki by then. But as a result Kazekage, your father the Fourth Kazekage and the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi both perished. It's also hard to dismiss the possibility that this was all part of an even larger plot." he cast a look at Danzo as he said this ' _That crafty old badger._ But the most suspicious of all is the Hidden Mist. The Mist never engages in diplomacy, and it's rumored that that's where the Akatsuki originated."

Mei let out a sigh "Since it's come to this, I feel that I should be completely honest. We suspect that someone from behind the scenes was secretly manipulating Yagura, the Fourth Mizukage before me. There's also a very strong possibility that that certain someone was involved with the Akatsuki, and that is exactly why I didn't want to talk big."

"Each and every one off you-"

"You just watch your tone Raikage." Onoki shut him up "In fact, it's because you of the Hidden Cloud went around collecting ninjutsu, seeking more power in this era of disarmament. We had no choice but to hire the Akatsuki in order to try to counter your growing power."

"What was that?!"

"Both of you please calm yourself." Danzo told them "Before you start arguing over each other's merits, I would like to state the point that I was about to make earlier."

"And what would that be?"

"It is quite probable that the true leader of the Akatsuki is none other than Madara Uchiha himself." he received various shocked looks.

Mei was the first one to regain her voice "Are you sure of that?"

"But how could that even be possible?" asked Gaara "Hasn't he been dead for several decades?"

Onoki seemed particularly frantic "The Kazekage is right, Madara has been dead for more than 50 years!"

"I don't know all of the details." Danzo admitted "However, I received this information from a very reliable source."

"What are you saying?" A demanded "Are you saying that Madara is immortal?"

"We cannot rule out that possibility."

"So then he really is some kind of inhuman monster." Onoki now seemed increasingly terrified by this revelation.

Then Mifune spoke up "I would like to say this as the leader of a neutral nation. The leader of the Akatsuki has been able to read the times well. Despite stabilizing, the Great Nations harbour suspicions about each other, and the Akatsuki seized on that weakness for the sake of amassing its power."

"Would you just get to the point?" A demanded.

"Please stay calm and remain patient Lord Raikage." Shibuki told him "I believe what Lord Mifune is trying to say is that we can turn this misfortune into a blessing. For all five of the Kage to convene in one location is an extremely rare case, as well as having one of the less prominent villages being present with them. Please allow me to offer my suggestion as to how to deal with this. Until the threat of the Akatsuki has been dealt with, perhaps it would be best to establish the world's first ever Allied Shinobi Forces?"

"An Allied Ninja Force?"

"We're practically in a state of emergency as it is, cooperation will be crucial at this point, and my Hidden Waterfall Village shall take part in it as well. Moving forward with this plan, a standardized chain of command would also be ideal. Further chaos must be avoided."

"Very well then." Danzo agreed ' _This is unbelievable, I didn't even have to use Shisui's eye on them._ So tell me Lord Shibuki, Lord Mifune, who do you propose we should give leadership of the Allied Shinobi Forces too then?"

Shibuki shared a look with Mifune "With all due respect, if the choice were left to you then all of you, particularly Lord Tsuchikage and Lord Raikage, would just squabble and argue over it. Therefore, since Lord Mifune and I have been deemed as neutral parties worthy of presiding over you, allow us to make this suggestion. We shall decide who among the Five Kage is the most suitable to lead. Firstly, the Hidden Leaf is the only one of our villages that still has a jinchuriki if I'm correct."

"That's not necessarily true Lord Shibuki." Mei told him "Utakata, the jinchuriki of the Six Tails, had recently returned to our village after clearing up a misunderstanding."

"I see. As I was saying before, how these jinchuriki are guided will be the key. Under these circumstances, I feel that Lady Mizukage would be the best choice to lead the Allied Shinobi Forces."

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At the same time, Sakura heard this and began making her way through, slipping past all of the samurai guards.

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Ino watched over Tsunade's comatose form ' _If only Lady Tsunade would wake up from her coma, I know she'd fix this whole mess with Sakura.'_

"Hey."

Ino looked and saw Shikamaru enter, looking deadly serious "Shikamaru."

"We need to talk."

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Tatsu's group met up with Naruto's group at the inn "So how'd it go meeting with Lord Raikage?"

Asuma sighed "About as well as you'd expect. What about you guys and Lady Mizukage?"

"Well we informed her about Utakata and gave her the scroll and some of Sasuke's blood so she can reverse summon."

"I see… that's good…" Naruto just sprawled out on the floor, staring at the ceiling with only one thing on his mind ' _Sakura…'_

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Ino's eyes shot wide "He did what?"

Shikamaru nodded "Yeah that's right, Naruto even went so far to deal with all of that Hidden Cloud chick's abuse, but he still refused to sell out Sakura. Not only that, he didn't want you to worry about this so he asked Tatsu to keep it quiet. I only know because I was watching from afar. Now he's even gone so far as to ask the Raikage to let him deal with Sakura himself."

"What? Why would he be so reckless? Wasn't Kakashi-sensei with him?"

"Knowing Naruto, I have my doubts that would've stopped him. Kakashi believes in Naruto, and Asuma does too to the point where he willingly went with him. Even if it is a long shot, they want to give him a chance."

"...If Lady Tsunade had been there then she would've done the same thing. Looks to me like despite everything that happened during the Chunin Exams, Naruto still cares about Sakura and doesn't want her to fall any further than she already has. Clearly Sakura's still making Naruto suffer like she always has, but he just can't bring himself to hate her. What he feels for Sakura isn't anger or hatred. It's sadness. That's the kind of person that Naruto is, and always has been, and always will be. When I think about Sakura, I get this angry burning feeling in my gut. For the sake of Naruto, for the Hidden Leaf, we can't solely rely on him for this. We have to take action ourselves."

"Shikamaru is right." Lee poked his head into the tent "We've gotta stop the Akatsuki before they hurt anyone else, and then we have to stop Sakura before she falls even lower than she already has. I originally came here to talk to the members of Team 7 and get their consent for this."

"So you're thinking the same thing I am?"

"Yeah. We can't let a war break out between the Hidden Leaf and the Hidden Cloud because of Sakura's actions, especially not with the Akatsuki still being out there."

"Agreed." Shikamaru turned to Ino "Let me try to put it another way Ino, just hear me out. If the Hidden Cloud _did_ kill Sasuke then we might be fine with it but there's no way in hell Naruto would just let be, and if he were to lash out recklessly and get killed by Hidden Cloud ninja then there's no way any of us would just sit still. We'd go out and avenge him, then the other side wouldn't remain quiet and they'd retaliate to, and if you, me or Choji were to get killed by Cloud ninja then our fathers would just head out, and before you know it we'd be at war. According to what the messenger from the Hidden Cloud had told us they already consider Sakura to be an international criminal, if Sakura continues to ally herself with the Akatsuki then the hatred spreading through the world would only grow. So I believe that it's time for the Hidden Leaf Village to deal with Sakura ourselves. Ino, you understand what I'm saying don't you? That's why I want your consent."

Ino just looked up, a single tear streaming down her cheek "I know, and I understand."

"Good. I was hoping to get Naruto and Sasuke's consent too, where are they?"

"They already left." Lee told him "They went with Tatsu, Kakashi-sensei and Asuma-sensei to meet with the Raikage and Mizukage in the Land of Iron."

"...Just perfect, leave it to those three to make things a drag."

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A was less than pleased with what Shibuki and Mifune told them "What? Let the Mizukage lead the Allied Shinobi Forces?"

"I personally agree." Danzo admitted "Lady Mizukage has done well in aiding her village in recovering from the nightmare left behind by the Fourth Mizukage, whether he was manipulated or not being irrelevant at this point."

A was still foaming at the mouth "Why the Mizukage?! She hails from the village with the title Blood Mist Village! We cannot let them take charge!"

"Then who would you suggest Lord Raikage?" Shibuki inquired.

"My village has not produced even one single member of the Akatsuki, such a crucial role must be filled by the one most trustworthy! It should be me!"

"I'm afraid I cannot agree to that, Lord Raikage." Mifune told her.

"What did you say?!"

Shibuki promptly pointed to the damage left by A's earlier tantrum "I fully agree that a certain amount of intensity and strength is crucial to assemble and lead a force of power houses such as these. However, your actions are ruled by your emotions without enough control may very well end up splintering an allied force, particularly in your qualms with Lord Tsuchikage just as you did that desk. Lord Mifune and I are simply stating our unbiased opinions as neutral parties in these discussions. Lord Kazekage is still too young and will have too much difficulty earning the trust, respect and cooperation of the people to spearhead such a venture. He does not have much pull with other nations, and his title Kazekage alone will not be sufficient. The same can be said with myself, as well as the fact that I'm not even an official Kage. Lord Tsuchikage on the other hand appears as too old and has given the impression that his power has waned. While this is not my opinion, I cannot speak for others. He has also openly admitted using the Akatsuki for the benefit of the Hidden Stone, and then there's the potential risk of him and Lord Raikage squabbling. Lord Hokage is known as the moniker of the Ninja of Darkness, and this may potentially ruin chances of him being trusted by the people of other villages, despite being one of the two villages that still possesses a jinchuuriki. The Hidden Mist, governed by Lady Mizukage, is suspected of being the birthplace of the Akatsuki, so there is some potential concern about the possibility of intelligence leaks. People may wonder if there are spies. We don't know why the Akatsuki are gathering Tailed Beasts or their intentions for them, but we do know that we can't let them have the Kyuubi of the Hidden Leaf or the Six Tails of the Hidden Mist. Lord Hokage has already been ruled out, which leaves Lady Mizukage. She has also shown highly capable leadership skills, leading her village out of the tragic, bloodsoaked past left behind by her predecessor. I feel that she would make a quite capable leader."

"Regardless of any other concerns, I would never agree to an Allied Shinobi Force that would compromise the security of my village!"

That was when White Zetsu suddenly popped up "Well hello there!"

"One problem after another, now what?!"

Danzo's eye narrowed "Is he one of the Akatsuki?"

Onoki nodded "It appears that way."

White Zetsu had a huge shiteating grin "Guess what? Sakura Haruno has snuck in here! I wonder, where do you think she could be hiding right now? Any guesses?"

A was foaming at the mouth "What the hell is all of this?!"

"It's like a game of hide and seek, let's all try to find Sakura! Come on!"

A grabbed White Zetsu by the neck, anger clear in his eyes "Tell me where Sakura Haruno is, give me an answer right now!"

' _Th-This guys is… super fast…'_

"Refuse to answer and I'll show you no mercy!"

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Naruto lay on the floor of his room in the inn, lost in his thoughts ' _Sakura… where are you right now, and what are you thinking about? Do you ever think about me, or about Sasuke, or about Kakashi-sensei even a little bit? You betrayed and abandoned us against Orochimaru, you tried to kill Ino from behind, you were stripped of your title and sent to prison, what could you want now? Sakura… what are you after now? Has your anger, hatred and bitterness completely consumed you like it almost did with me, like it almost did with Sakura? Have you really let yourself become nothing more than an ordinary criminal? I'm not even sure who you are anymore… or who you ever were for that matter…'_

"Hey."

Naruto froze ' _That voice… Madara…'_

Sure enough, Madara sat on the ledge of the window behind him "We really should talk, Naruto Uzumaki…"

"Go to hell!" Naruto promptly burst through the wall with a quick Rasengan, leaving a large hole in the wall and roof.

"A Rasengan right off the bat huh?" Madara appeared on the roof without a scratch "You are aware that that doesn't work on me don't you?"

"Then what about this?" Sasuke suddenly blitzed behind Madara and grabbed him with his Susanoo, with Tatsu, Kakashi and Asuma getting ready to attack "Naruto stay where you are, don't move."

"I should've figured Sasuke of the Thunderclap, Kakashi of the Sharingan and Asuma of the Guardian Shinobi 12. You're all quick."

"Don't think we're going to let you get your hands on Naruto that easily, Madara Uchiha."

"You did hear what I just said didn't you? There are no attacks that exist in this world that will work against Madara Uchiha."

"Even if you're erasing yourself or this is just an astral projection, you'll still have to manifest physically if you want to take Naruto." Tatsu pointed out "You can't actually take him without doing that. You can't fend all of us off at once."

"Well I never imagined that this would be easy, I will admit that I have a plan in mind but at this moment I'm only here to talk."

"Talk?"

"That's right. I want to know what you did to make Nagato betray me, Naruto you've truly sparked my interest."

"I couldn't care less about what you want." Naruto growled "What are you planning to do with Sakura? Dammit, spit it out already!"

"Sakura huh? Very well then, I'll tell you about the girl who's been steeped to his very marrow in the resentment and hatred of the Shinobi World, the story of Sakura Haruno."

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A tightened his grip on White Zetsu "Where is Sakura now?! Answer me!"

"Since you leave me no choice, I'll give you a little hint." White Zetsu offered.

A promptly snapped his neck "C, begin!"

"You didn't have to kill him you know." Mei pointed out "If we had restrained and interrogated him then we may have obtained useful intel on the Akatsuki."

"It wouldn't work, no one in the Akatsuki has ever talked." Gaara told her "They're all completely devoted."

Mifune turned to his subordinates "Okisuke, Urakaku, give the order to find Sakura at once. Issue a number 2 battle ready state alert."

Then C suddenly located Sakura "Lord Raikage."

"Alright. C, Darui, come on!" A burst through the next wall and took off to find Sakura.

Darui turned sheepish "I'm sorry about the desk and the wall there."

"Hey Darui, quit yapping and let's go already!" C took off after A, with Darui following.

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Things were growing hectic.

Sakura noticed the samurai moving more erratically ' _The samurai are on the move, they must be looking for me. It must have been Zetsu, that bastard.'_ she quickly knocked out a samurai that spotted her, then turned to the others "I'm not in the best of moods right now, if you attack me then I have my doubts I'd be able to hold back."

"We could say the same to you!" the samurai then unleashed their Samurai Sabre technique.

Sakura merely held out one hand, and the chakra behind the attacks disappeared, her hair covering her eyes, then blitzed forward and cut down several samurai with ease. Then she noticed something from above ' _What now?'_

Then A dropped down in his Lightning Chakra Mode, with Darui and C behind him "Hey kid, I am going to teach you the fear of true fury!"

"Step aside, I have no business with you so get out of my way or I'll cut you down." Sakura charged in.

" **Water Style: Water Wall!"** Darui formed a water wall, preventing Sakura from getting any closer.

' _So he's the one!'_

" **Lightning Style: Emotion Wave!"** Darui channeled some lightning into the water, using it as a conductor.

Sakura held out both hands, causing the water and lightning to disappear.

"Boss, just as the intel reported Sakura can definitely absorb chakra."

' _These guys are Hidden Cloud jonin, and that behemoth in the middle must be the Raikage. I can't get past him very easily.'_

"I'll stop him." C formed some hand seals " **Lightning Illusion: Flash Pillar!"** he unleashed a blast of light.

' _He's trying to blind me!'_ she formed a hand seal.

Then A and Darui appeared in front of her "It's too late!"

" **Summoning Jutsu: Reanimation!"** two coffins appeared, one stopping each attack.

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Kazuma was quick to incinerate White Zetsu with his Tenseigan Mode, and he, Danzo and Shisui departed to find Sakura and take care of her.

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Madara began to tell the tale of how Sakura came to be a part of the Akatsuki "The tale of Sakura Haruno is a relatively simple one. You see, three years ago I was aware of Orochimaru's plans to invade the Leaf only to come across a very interesting sight. A lone girl rotting in a prison cell, deluded by this failure of a world. I took pity on her and offered her strength and a position in my organization. With nothing left to lose, she accepted, stealing some of the most formidable jutsu and equipment this world has to offer."

"But why?" Naruto demanded "Why would Sakura stoop so low? What could she have to gain by joining the Akatsuki?"

"Various things actually. Power, Sasuke's heart even if it had to be forced, and revenge on you for what happened against Orochimaru."

"You made her that way didn't you?"

"Quite the opposite actually, Sakura chose this path for herself and she chose it of her own free will. I took a gamble on whether or not she would actually be loyal to me if I freed her, she chose whatever side would offer her the chance to take revenge on those who wronged her. That means she is one of my kind. Sakura's goal now is to wreak vengeance on the Hidden Leaf for what they did to her."

"...Why? How did this whole thing turn into such a big mess? Why did she go so far just to take some pointless revenge?"

"It couldn't be helped, she's become so obsessed with Sasuke that she's inherited the Uchiha clan's blood soaked destiny of hate. It's a curse that has been passed down through the ages."

"A curse?"

"That's right, a Curse of Hatred that began generations ago with the father of all shinobi, the Sage of the Six Paths."

"Sage of the Six Paths? But that's nothing but a myth." Kakashi protested "Pain appearing with the Rinnegan was nothing more than a random mutation, that's all."

"But myths are often based on the truth. The Sage of the Six Paths taught ninshu, the shinobi creed, and tried to foster world peace. But unfortunately, his end came before he fulfilled his dream. The sage bequeathed his will, and also his teachings, to his two children, both of them being sons. The oldest son had been the one with the sage's eyes, granting him chakra powers and mental energy. He knew strength was necessary for peace. The younger son had been born with the gift of the sage's body, granting him stamina and physical energy. He knew love was necessary for peace. On his deathbed, the sage chose a single successor. His decision created the eternal Curse of Hatred that has continued for generations."

"What do you mean by that?" asked Asuma.

"The sage decided to choose not the older brother who sought strength, but instead the older brother who sought love, and made the second son his successor. The first born, who had long expected to follow in the footsteps of his father, could not accept this decision. Filled with rage and bitterness, he declared war on his younger brother. Even as time passed and blood ties thinned, the descendents of the two brothers continued to battle each other. The descendents of the older brother came to be known as the Uchiha clan, while the descendents of the younger brother-"

"Came to be known as the Senju." Tatsu realized.

"Correct. As an Uchiha, my battle with the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, was destined to occur. This may be only our second meeting, but I can tell that you hold the Will of Fire of the Senju clan within you. I can see the spirit of the First Hokage enduring within you. Even in death he lives on, he who I so admired yet was my rival, and the man I hated most. The Senju and the Uchiha, the Will of Fire and the Curse of Hatred. Sasuke, you were originally supposed to inherit the Curse of Hatred, but instead you took on the Will of Fire, forcing Sakura to take your place. Now Naruto, you and Sakura are the next in line to be chosen by destiny. The Uchiha clan has been cursed with a destiny of hatred and vengeance. Sasuke, you have subconsciously passed on the burden of the Uchiha clan's hatred onto Sakura, turning her into what she has become now. And now, she will strike deep into the world with that curse. That hatred has become her most powerful weapon, her friend, and the source of her power. _That_ is Sakura's ninja way."

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A stared at the coffin before him "I don't know what this is and I don't care, all I know is that you're gonna die!"

"I wouldn't be so sure you oaf." Sakura formed a hand seal, and one of the coffins opened, revealing an old man in a tan robe.

' _That's-!'_

"This is En no Gyoja, the developer of the forbidden jutsu of the Tsuchigumo clan and the one who mastered that forbidden jutsu in a way nobody else in his clan has."

"Well now I get to teach both you and this old geezer why you shouldn't underestimate the Raikage! **Elbow Bolt!"** A aimed his elbow forward.

En no Gyoja dodged the elbow and aimed his hand at A's chest, red markings appearing around it.

A's chest was burnt slightly, but he still grabbed En no Gyoja "A direct attack using nature energy to increase its power, I should've expected as much from someone like you. I'm impressed that you were able to actually burn me despite me donning my lightning style armor. That's some jutsu you've got there, but-!" he grabbed En no Gyoja and lifted him straight into the air " **LIGER BOMB!"** he promptly slammed En no Gyoja into the ground, creating a massive crater.

When it was over, En no Gyoja stood, his arms and chest destroyed but reforming.

' _No one has ever survived the Liger Bomb before, but if this the jutsu that the Second Hokage developed then that means he's still dead. But even so…'_ A bulked himself up even further "Go ahead and bring it old man.

En no Gyoja merely held out his hand " **Fury Implosion."** he attempted to use nature energy to implode A's body from the inside in order to kill him.

A dodged this blast, causing this fate to fall upon a samurai behind him, as well as two samurai that tried to help him" **Lateral Bolt of Pain!"** he chopped En no Gyoja straight in the neck, sending him to the ground, then leapt into the air "You're finished now old man! **Guillotine Drop!"** he slammed into En no Gyoja with a powerful kick, then turned to Sakura "You're next girl!" he charged.

That is, before Shisui appeared between them and stopped them with his Susanoo "That's enough, both of you."

Danzo then applied his sealing jutsu to En no Gyoja's chest, binding him and preventing him from moving "All of you samurai evacuate this area at once, this is a problem for the shinobi world to deal with. There is no need for samurai to lose their lives pointlessly."

"Th-Thank you, Lord Hokage." the samurai eagerly fled.

"Why did you interfere Hokage?!" A demanded "Your answer will determine your punishment."

"If you had continued with that attack then you would have left yourself open to whatever traps she may have set." Danzo removed his robe, revealing a simple white kimono "This is mainly the problem of the Leaf, I will deal with her myself."

"Just come and try it old man." Sakura formed a hand seal, and the second coffin opened, revealing the figure inside "I went through a lot of trouble to get this one."

Danzo stopped in shock ' _That's…'_

The figure stepped out "Is that you Danzo? You've really aged haven't you?"

"Kagami Uchiha… not once in my life did the day come that I thought that we would have to fight each other, please prepare yourself."

"Right." Kagami looked down "A summoning jutsu is it?"

"Yes, the forbidden Reanimation Jutsu used by Lord Second. You'll be forced to do battle with me."

"I see." Kagami opened his eyes, revealing his Sharingan "Let's at least take this somewhere else, a battle between us will result in far too many innocent lives."

"Agreed." Danzo turned to Shisui and Kazuma "You two take care of things here, I will stop Kagami myself." and he took off, with Kagami right behind him.

 **A/N:**

 **I know the Hidden Waterfall wasn't part of it in canon, but before you guys start squawking ask yourselves this: Why weren't any of the minor ninja villages involved?**

 **I know Sakura inheriting the Curse of Hatred was kind of an asspull, but I had to do it.**


	23. Declaration of War, Cherry Blossom Falls

"Naruto." Madara continued "You will most likely end up fighting Sakura one day, or more like I'm going to throw Sakura at you. The long pre-destined battle. I'll have Sakura validate the existence of the Uchiha in Sasuke's place."

"Sakura isn't just your toy." Naruto snarled "Quit talking nonsense!"

"You think you can make Sakura have a change of heart like you did with Nagato? That right there is nothing more than a fantasy Naruto, to control others you must possess the ability to manipulate the darkness in their souls. Nagato just happened to be easily influenced, that's all there is to it and nothing more."

"Never compare someone like yourself to someone like Nagato! His methods may have been different from mine, but he truly wanted peace! But you're so different from him it's sickening!"

"Without a doubt."

Tatsu glared skeptically at him "Is that really your goal? To validate the existence of the Uchiha clan and this supposed Curse of Hatred? Then why go so far as to collect the Tailed Beasts? Tell us what your true purpose is, what do you want?"

"Well if I wanted anything than I would have to say that it would be to be a complete form."

"A complete form? And just what the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Talking to you about it now is pointless, I'll explain it at a more appropriate time and place. It was fun chatting with all of you. Until we meet again." then he suddenly warped away.

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Sakura found herself surrounded ' _The Raikage and his aids, Kazuma Kamikaze and Shisui Uchiha, and who knows how many samurai. Even with my ability to absorb or negate ninjutsu, I can't take all of these guys on if I want to live.'_

"You seem to be having trouble."

Sakura looked to see Madara warp into existence behind her "I underestimated them, that's all there is to it."

"Don't worry about it, I didn't expect Shisui and Kazuma to appear with Danzo." he then warped her away into his right eye and turned to Shisui and Kazuma "We'll meet again you two." then he disappeared himself.

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At the same time, Killer B emerged from his hiding spot and decided to visit Kin, his Enka master, in the Land of Iron.

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Tatsu checked out the sight where Madara once stood, but shook his head "There isn't a single trace left of him, whatever that warping jutsu is it's extremely effective."

"Yeah…" Naruto muttered "Tatsu, Kakashi-sensei, all that stuff you told us…"

"Just be careful Naruto, take it with a grain of salt."

"But if what he said is true then Sakura is-"

"Naruto. Look man, I know how you feel, but in times like this you have to be patient. We're in the middle of rebuilding the village, we can't let this whole thing with Sakura and the Akatsuki become public knowledge. The last thing we need is more chaos and confusion. Naruto, if you do wanna be the one to take Sakura down then you've gotta keep this quiet. Got it?"

"Yeah, I got it. I don't like it, but I've got it."

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A bolted back into the conference, followed by Shisui and the others "Where is Sakura?! WHERE IS SHE?!"

"It doesn't matter." Onoki let out an annoyed grunt "I'll just end this when I see her by turning that brat into dust with my Particle Style."

"The hell you will, I wanted another go at her!"

"And you still get to have a go at her." then Madara warped into the room "So quit whining will you Raikage?"

"And who might you be exactly?" Shibuki inquired.

"My name is Madara Uchiha, and I've come here today to explain something to all of you, and once I'm thoroughly sure you understand I'll ask you a question."

"Very well then." Shibuki stepped forward, then turned back to his escorts "Kegon, Yoro, be sure to remain on standby." then he turned back to Madara "What is it that you wish to tell us?"

"It's about my plan, a little something I refer to as Project Tsuki no Me."

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At the same time, Ino, Lee and Yahiko were heading to the Land of Iron themselves in order to meet up with Tatsu, Naruto and the others.

The entire thing had to be kept top secret.

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Naruto sat on the roof of the inn, thinking about what Madara had said ' _I know Sakura can't be saved, and I know I don't have any feelings for her anymore, but even so, I can't bare to let her do these things anymore… The only thing left I can do is ask her myself. First things first, if I'm gonna track her down then I'll need Sage Mode.'_ he began meditating.

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A charged at Madara, only to phase through him and slam into the wall behind him ' _How the hell did I-?_ Anything related to the Akatsuki is bad new and honestly, it isn't going to make any sense either. Bring Sakura to us right now!"

"That will depend on your response to what I'm about to tell you." Madara told him calmly.

"Please calm yourself Lord Raikage." Shibuki told him "For now, let's hear what he has to say and go from there."

"Now then, are all of you finally prepared to listen?"

"Firstly, tell us." Gaara spoke "Why are you trying to win over Sakura Haruno?"

"Her level of intelligence and superb chakra control are quite rare, and I happen to like to stock up on good recourses. By battling the Five Kage, she'd honed herself even further, which is exactly why I sent him here. I was hoping to weaken the Five Kage and take at least some of you as hostages, but I guess that was too much to ask of her."

"Take the Five Kage as hostages? What could you possibly want with that?"

"I wanted to make sure that Project Tsuki no me was implemented smoothly."

"I'm truly surprised that the infamous Madara Uchiha is still alive." Onoki admitted "But I'm also confused, why would you of all people need to use such roundabout tactics? With all of your power, you oughta be able to bring any plan of yours to fruition easily."

"My injures from my battle with the First Hokage Hashirama were to severe, I currently have far too little of my true power and I am now but a shell of my former self."

"So what then?" asked Shibuki "Is this plan of yours meant to restore your power?"

"Well I suppose you could say that, but there's so much more to it than that."

"What are you scheming?" asked Mifune "Exactly what is this Project Tsuki no me?"

"It will be quite a long story, so I'll need to sit down." Madara sat down.

"Enough stalling, what kind of plan is it?" asked Shisui.

"This kind." Madara held up a single finger "All shall become one with me in a complete possession form that unites all."

"What do you mean by that?" asked Shibuki "To become one and unite all of us, what could you possibly mean by that?"

"There is an ancient Stone Tablet that has been passed down within the Uchiha clan hidden in a room beneath the Hidden Leaf, upon it being a written secret engraved by none other than the Sage of Six Paths himself. They cannot be read without visual powers. With the Sharingan, Mangekyo Sharingan and Rinnegan respectively, more and more knowledge is progressively revealed."

"And your story is becoming more and more unbelievable, the Sage of the Six Paths is nothing more than a mere myth."

"It is the truth, he did indeed exist and he left that Stone Tablet behind."

"Don't change the subject!" A stomped forward "And what exactly does this Sage of Six Paths have to do with your plan anyway?"

"Do any of you know why he became a legendary figure? One that is revered like a god amongst shinobi? This is where the link between that man and my purposes lies."

"Madara Uchiha, you possess the Mangekyo Sharingan and your fellow Akatsuki member had possession of the Rinnegan." Mei pointed out "Do you mean to say that you know all of the secrets of that tablet then? If so, then tell us."

"You see, the sage once saved the world from a certain monster."

"What monster would that be?" asked Shibuki.

"Well Gaara, the young Kazekage here, once held merely one small piece of that monster sealed away within you. It was the aggregate of all of the Tailed Beasts, a creature that possessed almost infinite chakra, and it was referred to as the Ten Tails."

"But I thought there were only 9 Tailed Beasts." Temari pointed out.

"Like I just told you, it was the aggregate of all 9 of the Tailed Beasts. Shukaku, Gaara's former Tailed Beast that you know as the One Tail, the fiery rathe cat of the Hidden Cloud's Yugito Nii, the Two Tails, the Three Tails of Yagura Karatachi the former Fourth Mizukage, the Four Tails belonging to Roshi of the Lava Style, the Five Tails belonging to Han of the Hidden Stone, the Six Tails belonging to the former rogue ninja Utakata, the Seven Tails belonging to Fu of the Hidden Waterfall, the Eight Tails belong to Killer B, the younger brother of the Raikage, and the Nine Tails, the fox spirit of the Hidden Leaf. The chakra of the Ten Tails had simple been divided up to create the nine Tailed Beasts that we know today but the hand of the Sage of the Six Paths himself. The Sage of the Six Paths developed a certain ninjutsu in order to protect the world from the Ten Tails. That ninjutsu is still being secretly passed down, it happens to be the sealing jutsu process used on jinchuuriki."

Shibuki was first to realize what he meant "Wait, you mean-?"

"That's right. The Sage of the Six Paths was the Ten Tails' jinchuuriki. He sealed the Ten Tails within himself in order to suppress the monster. The sage who saved all of humanity from being terrorized by the beast was revered as a savior and as a god. However, the sage feared that upon his death the seal would come undone and the immense chakra of the Ten Tails would emerge once more, so in his final moments he summoned the last of his strength to partition the chakra of the Ten Tails into 9 pieces, and scattered them all across the world. Then he sealed away the body of the monster, now devoid of chakra, and hurled it up into the sky, and it became what we know as the moon."

"This story is ridiculous." Darui muttered "I mean, what human being could do something like that?"

"As the jinchuuriki of the Ten Tails, the sage had already advanced beyond the realm of humanity."

"So you're trying to reassemble those 9 separated sources of chakra, all of the 9 Tailed Beasts in other words, and obtain that immense power." Mifune summarized "I can understand that part of your plan, but what are you planning on doing with all of that power?"

"I plan to revive the Ten Tails of course, and then I will become its jinchuriki. I would then use its tremendous chakra in order to strengthen my visual prowess and launch a certain jutsu."

"What certain jutsu?" asked Shibuki "Which one could you possible mean? Just what is this grand plan of yours?"

"I plan to launch a super genjutsu where I project my eye off of the surface of the moon, an Infinite Tsukiyomi. All living beings that live on this earth will be placed under my genjutsu. And as a result, by controlling every single one of them I shall unify the entire world. I will create a world without any hatred or war, everything will become one with me and everything will be united. _That_ is Project Tsuki no me."

"You're insane!" A barked out almost immediately "There's no way in hell I'm just handing the world over to you!"

"That kind of piece is just an illusion." Gaara pointed out "Peace is only meaningful when one is able to achieve it honestly."

Mei nodded "So what exists inside this genjutsu world of yours? There's no hopes, no dreams, it's just an escape."

"So you want to unite the world." Onoki noted"It sounds to me that instead of uniting the world, you actually want to make the world yours and only yours."

Shibuki nodded "All you're trying to do is enslave humanity and make yourself into some sort of god, well I will never live in such a world."

Madara chuckled "And yet with all of your talk, what have you Five Kage accomplished? You of all people should know the truth by now. There is no hope. To hope is the same as giving up, and it's nothing more than the biggest deception of all. Now then, turn over the remaining three Tailed Beasts and cooperate with my plan. I mean the Six Tails, the Eight Tails and the Nine Tails. If you don't cooperate then I guarantee you that there will be war."

"War? Is that what this has come to?"

"Eight Tails?" A finished processing "What do you mean Eight Tails? You captured B!"

Madara shook his head "The capture of the Eight Tails failed and he escaped, now _there_ is a shinobi who is a perfect jinchuuriki. There really is no one quite like your younger brother."

"...WHAT?!"

"So it's true." Darui noted "I had a feeling he escaped."

"You say that like this is a regular occurrence." Shibuki pointed out.

"With B it kind of is."

"THAT GIANT FOOL!" A roared "He used this chance to run off and play hooky?! Unforgivable! I'm gonna give him my Iron Claw of Punishment for this!"

"I will not give up Naruto Uzumaki." Gaara said firmly.

Mei nodded "I agree with Lord Kazekage. Utakata is more than a jinchuuriki, he is my trusted friend and I will give my life before I let you have him."

Onoki turned to A "What do you say about this Raikage?"

"I'll never hand my brother over to the likes of you!" A roared.

"I may not have any strength myself." Madara admitted "However, what I do have is the power of the six Tailed Beasts I have already captured. You have no chance of winning here."

"There is no way we will abandon hope." Gaara said firmly.

"Very well then, you leave me no choice. I hereby declare war on all of you, the Fourth Great Ninja War begins now!"

"You're officially insane." Shibuki stated "You'd have to be to start the Fourth Great Ninja War."

"Perhaps, but I am never one to say such things lightly. Take this time to get ready, for the next time we meet will be on the battlefield!" and with that, Madara warped away.

"...Wow."

"Alright then, what shall we all do now?" asked Onoki.

"Our nations must form an alliance." Gaara told him "It's the only way we could possibly fight the power of six Tailed Beasts."

"Lord Raikage, you initially opposed this idea." Mei pointed out.

"It seems my little brother is safe." A noted "But all the same, we can't let ourselves be bullied by the Akatsuki any longer. Form the Allied Shinobi Forces, we'll settle this for good."

"What do we do about the Hidden Leaf?" asked Onoki "The Hokage still hasn't returned from where he ran off during the chaos."

"I shall inform the Hokage about the news." Kazuma told him "And Shisui and I shall also inform another Leaf shinobi I greatly trust and respect."

"And who would that be?" asked A.

"Kakashi Hatake of the Sharingan Eye."

' _Oh, that guy.'_

"Do you mean the son of the White Fang?" asked Onoki.

"That's acceptable, he at least seems trustworthy."

"Lord Raikage, we must take steps to locate Killer B right away." C pointed out "Since the Akatsuki are after the Six, Eight and Nine Tails, that means that they're probably still pursuing Killer B."

"You're right. Okay, then send word back to the village immediately. Have them put together a search party and find B."

"Yes sir."

"And we ought to inform Samui's team right away too." Darui commented "Omoi and Karui are really distraught."

"There is one other thing." Mei spoke up "In order to stop Madara's project Tsuki no me, we absolutely must keep the Six, Eight and Nine Tails out of his clutches. I believe it's imperative that our forces find them before anyone else does and get them out of sight and into hiding as fast as we can."

Onoki still seemed unsure "Yeah but I can't even begin to imagine the power Madara has amassed with six Tailed Beasts, and if he possesses jutsu that utilize them then that will be his secret weapon or else he would not have been so bold. I believe the Allied Shinobi Forces should also plan to use the strength of the Six, Eight and Nine Tails in battle, don't you all agree with that?"

"No, absolutely not." Gaara said firmly "This is also a war to protect all of them. I think the reason why Madara is waging war with his six Tailed Beasts is that in his weakened state it's too difficult for him to capture the remaining Tailed Beasts with just the remaining Akatsuki members, and even if it were possible the risks are too high. Also, he may be hoping to use this war to lure them both out. For many reasons, using the Tailed Beasts in battle is not a wise strategy to use."

"I agree, we must find a different plan." Shibuki spoke up "After all, my Hidden Waterfall shall participate in this war as well."

A nodded "Yes I also concur with the Kazekage, if we consider the worst case scenario then it's like offering the Tailed Beasts up on a silver platter. Besides that, military strategy is a foreign concept to my little brother, the jinchuuriki of the Eight Tails. I could never predict what he would try to do, and he would most likely just bring his own brand of chaos to the battlefield with him."

"Very well, then the remaining jinchuriki will be under protective custody." Shibuki noted "So what do you think of this Lord Tsuchikage?" he received a nod.

"We'll share intel on Killer B with all of you from the Stone, Mist, Sand, Leaf and Waterfall. Use it to put together tracking units and get them moving, instruct them to inform me the very moment they locate the Eight Tails since my younger brother will only listen to me. Kazuma Kamikaze, Shisui Uchiha, we'll trust you to speak with Kakashi."

Kazuma nodded "Understood Lord Raikage."

"I saw Kakashi Hatake and the Nine Tails jinchuuriki brat on our way here, they might still be in the Land of Iron so I would look around here first."

"Very well. However, there is one other thing."

"What?"

"Among the remaining members of the Akatsuki is another one of the Seven Ninja Swordsman of the Mist, Kisame Hoshigaki. From what I understand his chakra levels equal to that of a jinchuriki, and his sword Samehada is the most formidable of all the blades. When his sword and chakra merge together, human or not he has power equal to that of a jinchuuriki. He's like a Tailed Beast without a tail, he's a truly extraordinary enemy. He isn't someone you should underestimate."

"Yes, we already know about that." Onoki told him "But anyway, are all of you sure about this plan? We don't know just how much power is possessed by the six Tailed Beasts already in Madara's clutches, if we hold the Six, Eight and Nine Tails back and our Allied Shinobi Forces are wiped out while protecting the three of them then the entirety of our efforts would have been meaningless and all for naught. If that's the case then it's better to use them right from the start and let them wage a two front war alongside our combined forces."

"Actually, I do wonder about that." Mifune spoke up "The world's first Allied Shinobi Force is being formed here, right at this very moment, and its strength is also unknown. There must be some risk in Madara using the power of seven Tailed Beasts, otherwise he would never have gone out of his way to come to this summit and try to negotiate. He must be facing unfavorable circumstances just like us. Furthermore, we samurai shall also participate in this war. Is this more satisfactory Lord Tsuchikage, or do you still harbour doubts?"

Onoki said nothing.

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Naruto was in the middle of meditating, trying to gather energy for Sage Mode ' _There's no way we can do what we always do, or we'll never find Sakura. I'll have to use Sage Mode, but I need to find a way to make it last longer.'_ his eyes snapped open as he entered Sage Mode and looked down at the others "Guys, we've got company."

Sure enough, Lee, Ino, Yahiko and Konan showed up "Finally, it took us forever to track you guys down."

Naruto dropped down from the roof, with Tatsu and the rest following "What are all of you doing all the way out here?"

"Naruto." Ino stepped forward "I need to talk to you about something very important.

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Shibuki, Mifune and the remaining Kage were still discussing.

"So Danzo is currently in the wind." Onoki pointed out "The question of who will be chosen to lead the Allied Shinobi Forces is still an issue."

"As Lord Shibuki said before, I too feel that Lady Mizukage is the best choice." Mifune told them "Her leadership skills and calm demeanour make her ideal in leading the Allied Shinobi Forces. Are you alright with this Lord Tsuchikage, Lord Kazekage, Lord Raikage?"

"This is not the time or place for petty squabbles." Gaara told them "I will put my trust in you."

Mei nodded "Very well then, I shall lead the Allied Shinobi Forces."

A shot a look in Onoki's direction "Onoki the Fence Sitter, since you're the only one who's battled Madara Uchiha before we'll need any intel you can give us."

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Danzo stopped Kagami on a large stone bridge on the outskirts of the Land of Iron "Here, this is where we will settle this."

Kagami looked around "Rather narrow with limited space, you can't move around as freely but neither can I. You clearly haven't changed at all."

"Nor have you." Danzo threw away his cane.

"You also placed a barrier around, knowing you you'd find it a big bother if someone came and got in the way."

"Yes." Danzo then charged " **Wind Style: Vacuum Bullets!"** he breathed out several wind bullets.

Kagami was hit dead on, leaving several small holes in his body, but still formed multiple hand seals " **Water Style: Liquid Bullets!"** he hit Danzo dead on, leaving several holes in his body.

Danzo suddenly dissolved into mud.

"So he swapped with an Earth Style Shadow Clone."

" **Earth Style: Great Mud River!"**

Kagami was suddenly sent sliding down the bridge in a river of mud "It will take more than that to stop me Danzo."

"I'm well aware." Danzo formed several hand seals " **Wind Style: Wind Dragon Bomb!"** he summoned a wind dragon that shot out a continuous barrage of air bullets, then formed more hand seals " **Fire Style: Dragon Flame Bomb!"** he summoned a fire dragon that breathed out a barrage of flame bullets that combined with the air bullets, enhancing the flames to an even greater extent, engulfing Kagami in an enhanced blast of fire.

When it was over, Kagami emerged with only small wounds that immediately began regenerating "I see your skills haven't wavered, but don't forget that I've seen the horrors of war and you know what that means."

"I'm well aware." Danzo removed his bandages, revealing Shisui's Sharingan "I shall do whatever it takes to stop you."

"Thank you." Kagami then activated his Mangekyo Sharingan "Come."

"As you wish." Danzo charged and formed several hand seals " **Wind Style: Vacuum Blast Barrage!"** he breathed out several blasts of wind.

Kagami was protected by a white ribcage made of pure chakra "Whoever's controlling me isn't letting me hold back Danzo, be careful."

"I know."

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Naruto stood face to face with Ino "So what's up?"

Ino looked him dead in the eye "It's about Sakura. There's something that I need to ask you to do."

"Ino, I'm sorry but I just can't find it in myself to bring her back. Not after everything she's done."

"I know. What I'm going to ask is, I want you to make sure she doesn't fall any further than she already has."

Naruto wrapped his arms around Ino "I will, that's all I can do for her."

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Danzo got into a stance "Don't think I'm going to hold back just because you're dead or because we're old friends Kagami."

"I wouldn't have it any other way old friend." Kagami deactivated his Mangekyo Sharingan ' _I may be dead, but the effects of the Mangekyo still remain._ Danzo, you know what my weaknesses are don't you? Use that knowledge to your advantage in this battle." then he charged, starting the battle with taijutsu.

Danzo went on the defensive and evasive, dodging and blocking his attacks, then leapt back and formed several hand seals " **Wind Style: Vacuum Blast Barrage!"** he breathed out several blasts of wind.

" **Water Style: Water Wall!"** Kagami summoned a wall of water, shielding himself from the wind attack, then formed another hand seal " **Water Style: Water Shockwave!"** he unleashed a large wave of water that shot forward.

" **Earth Style: Mud Wall!"** Danzo summoned a wall of earth to protect himself, then leapt out of the way of the remainder of the attack.

Kagami charged in.

" **Wind Style: Vacuum Bullets!"** Danzo breathed out several wind bullets.

Kagami powered through and kicked up some water to block Danzo's vision, then kicked him in the face and slugged him, then kicked him, sending him tumbling back.

Danzo let out a groan "As quick as strong as ever I see, I should have expected no less from you Kagami."

"Behind you!"

Danzo looked back, only to be pulled into the water beneath the bridge ' _So the first one was just a Shadow Clone, how could I have been so blind. Using Shisui's eye won't do me any good against someone like him, this battle is quite the challenge.'_ he broke free and climbed up the mud wall.

" **Water Style: Water Fang Bomb!"** Kagami shot forward a barrage of water bullets, causing the mud wall to crumble and break apart.

Danzo landed back on the bridge, panting heavily.

Then Kagami's Mangekyo Sharingan flared into life "Get ready Danzo, here comes the next one!" a white Susanoo engulfed him, various whips springing from the ground.

Danzo leapt from one whip to the next, only to be caught ' _Dammit, this is bad. I don't have any other choice, I'll have to use that.'_ he bit down on his thumb " **Summoning Jutsu: Baku!"** then he summoned an elephantine chimera, freeing him from the Susanoo, before Baku then disappeared again. Then he pulled out a scroll and summoned a small staff " **Wind Style: Vacuum Staff!"** he breathed wind chakra into the staff, enlarging it and enhancing it with wind chakra.

Kagami drew his sword, his Susanoo disappearing and the blade of his sword glowing with white chakra.

' _So you've channeled the power of the Susanoo into your sword, such an incredible feet even for you Kagami.'_ Danzo charged in and thrusted his staff into the ground.

Kagami leapt over the attack, then used his sword to block the next barrage of attacks being thrown at him, being forced on the defensive, eventually finding himself struggling to hold back one attack. That is, until he formed two Shadow Clones that charged forward.

Danzo was forced to retract his attack, then quickly slammed two paper bombs onto their ankles, detonating and dissipating them.

The real Kagami then charged forward and slugged Danzo in the gut, then sent him to the ground with a kick to the face, then walked forward and aimed his sword, intending to end the battle with another strike.

' _Kagami…'_ Danzo suddenly grabbed Kagami by the neck.

Kagami exploded into mud, then reappeared.

Danzo slammed the staff down on Kagami's head as hard as he could.

Kagami got back up, his head badly damaged but quickly reforming.

' _I believed as much, it's useless to attack their bodies as long as their souls are bound to this world by the Reanimation Jutsu. So be it, there's only one thing I can do. I can use that to stop him, but to do that, I'll have to die.'_

Then blood spurted into the air.

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Killer Bee had been visiting his Enka master Kin in the Land of Iron.

That is, until Kisame appeared intending to capture Killer Bee, or more specifically, the Eight Tails inside of him.

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Naruto strapped on his vest on, his eyes gaining the pigments of Sage Mode ' _Okay, I think I'm ready.'_

"Are you really planning to go after Sakura alone?"

Naruto looked back to see Tatsu standing on a pole nearby "I've already tracked her down with Sage Mode, she's near the border of the Land of Iron along with Danzo and another chakra signature."

"That doesn't answer my question Naruto, why are you trying to go after Sakura by yourself? Just what are you hoping to accomplish?"

Naruto stared intently at him for a moment, then looked away "It's just… I feel like I'm kind of responsible for Sakura turning out the way she did. I feel like if I didn't give up on her as fast as I did then maybe she wouldn't have stooped so low as to join the Akatsuki. I said to Ino I'd finish it, but I'm still having a hard time gripping the fact that she's fallen as far as she has. I don't know if I can bring myself to do the job. That's why I'm going alone, to make sure you guys don't pay for it if I mess this up."

"Naruto, this whole thing with Sakura isn't your fault. She was rotten to the core from the beginning, this whole thing is because she was a twisted and sick minded fangirl who let her obsession turn to madness and an irrational desire for revenge. That is in no way, shape or form a reflection of your actions." Tatsu put a hand on his shoulder "I know this is something you feel that you have to do, but when you face Sakura promise me you'll have a firm heart and a clear mind or you're guaranteed to fail. Alright?"

"...Alright, I understand."

"Good. But just to be safe, take this." he summoned a sword from a scroll in his pack and handed it to Naruto "This is the chakra sword that Asuma gave me when I graduated from the Academy, I want you to have it."

"You mean it?"

"Yeah I don't need it anymore, I've got the Dragon Blade and I can think of nothing better for it than for you to have it. Now go get her, do whatever it takes to protect the people you care about the most."

"Tatsu… thank you." Naruto then took off.

"Sure thing."

"Tatsu." then Kazuma dropped down with Shisui.

Then Kakashi came out with Sasuke and the others "Kazuma, Shisui, what are you two doing here? I thought you were supposed to be with Danzo."

"That's what this is about. We have very important news and everyone needs to listen very carefully, we'll tell you about what happened at the Five Kage Summit."

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As his battle with Killer B continued, Kisame fused with Samehada and trapped him inside a Water Dome using his Super Exploding Water Shockwave.

Eventually Kisame managed to defeat Killer B, but before he could capture him, Samehada suddenly decided to betray him, favoring Killer B's chakra over that of Kisame.

That was when A and his party showed up, and together they hit Kisame with a Double Lariat, decapitating him on the spot.

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"And that's it." Kazuma finished explaining "That's everything that happened at the Five Kage Summit."

Kakashi frowned underneath his mask "I see. I can't believe everything at the summit could've gotten so out of control so quickly. And for the record, I'm really not too eager to become Hokage if anything happened to Danzo. Besides, even with the circumstances being what they are right now we'll still need to go back to the Hidden Leaf Village and discuss this with the others first."

"Madara announced that he was going to declare the start of the Fourth Great Ninja War against all of us, it's not like we have a ton of time to waste right now."

"It's not like it will take long to get everyone's approval." Tatsu pointed out "No offense to you or Shisui Kazuma, but right now Kakashi is the most qualified candidate as the Hokage so let's just proceed as if he'll be confirmed as Hokage. It will be a lot worse if the Akatsuki or Madara strike first and we're put on the defensive because we're too slow in our response."

Kakashi let out a tired sigh "Well I guess you're right. But then there's Sakura, I just can't believe she'd go as far as to attack the Five Kage Summit."

"And that's the other thing. Naruto took off about half an hour ago to find Sakura and deal with her by himself."

"...What?!"

"Naruto gets that Sakura doesn't see any of us anymore, not even Sasuke. The only thing she sees now is darkness. She won't stop until Naruto's head is on a pike, and he knows this all too well. He's resolved to end this before it begins."

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Danzo found a blade run through his chest and looked back to see who it was "You…"

Madara had stabbed Danzo from behind "It's been a long time Danzo, we haven't seen each other since the Uchiha incident if I recall correctly."

"Madara Uchiha…"

"I must thank Sakura later, she used Kagami to tire you out enough to the point where I could sneak behind you undetected."

Danzo glared, gripping his robe ' _Koga Kamikaze, I've spent so long with this jutsu set in my body that I forgot to thank you for helping me realize my purpose.'_

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(Flashback- after the end of the First Great Ninja War)

Koga Kamikaze, Tatsu and Kazuma's grandfather, found Danzo munching on some hikiji thoughtfully "You seem down."

Danzo looked up "Koga…"

"You're still thinking about what happened to Lord Second aren't you?"

"...I was completely willing to be the one to sacrifice myself to allow all of you to escape from the Hidden Cloud, so why? Why is it that no matter how much I wanted to, I just couldn't find it in myself to say it? And yet when Hiruzen said he would do it, my trembling stopped? Why was I such a coward? Why am I still a coward? Why can I never keep up with Hiruzen? My father and grandfather died in battle a shinobi, self sacrifice is the duty of a shinobi!"

"I think I understand. Danzo, you're afraid of dying."

Danzo's head snapped towards him "That's absurd! Didn't you hear what I just said?"

"Yes, but I also know that there's more to it than that. You're afraid of dying because, to be blunt, you're worried that your legacy will die with you."

Danzo stared intently at him.

"You're worried that all of your beliefs, your ideals, your faith will die with you because you haven't passed it onto your own children. I can understand it, before my son Kuroga was born I was the same way."

"You? But-"

"I know, I have this macho confident appearance. That's what you were going to say wasn't it?"

"Not even remotely close."

"...My point is, you want to make sure you're ideals live on even after you're gone. So how about this. My clan will carry on your legacy for you." he put a hand on Danzo's shoulder and gave him a kind smile "The Will of Fire, doing whatever it takes to protect the Hidden Leaf and everyone in it. That's not too bad a legacy, now is it?"

Danzo stared at him, eyes wide "Koga…"

(Flashback End)

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' _Yes Koga, perhaps my legacy won't die here…'_ Danzo struggled to remove Madara's blade from his chest, then blitzed between Kagami and Madara, being careful to make sure there was an even distance between him and each of them "For the sake of the shinobi world, for the sake of the Hidden Leaf, I cannot let the two of you continue to remain the world of the living any longer!" and he pulled open his robe, revealing a black sealing formula on his chest.

' _It's a Reverse Tetragram Sealing Jutsu!'_ recognizing the formula, Madara quickly leapt out of the way.

However, Danzo was able to trap Kagami within the black sphere that engulfed his body as a result of the formula ' _Hiruzen, it looks like the time has come for my turn now. Just as you gave up your life to protect the Hidden Leaf Village, the time has come for me to do the same. I will stop them with everything in my power… But in the end, I never did get to become the Hokage after all… No matter how far I ran, I was never able to… catch up to you… Hiruzen, you were always a tree leaf on which light had always shown, while I was nothing more than the roots, the foundation, hidden away in the darkness that supported your light… So tell me Hiruzen… what do you think of me? What was I… to you…?'_

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Naruto charged forward, Sage Mode burning strong, when he sensed it ' _Danzo's chakra has disappeared… Sakura, don't tell me you… I've gotta hurry!'_ he sped up, itching to grip the sword he now had strapped to his back ' _Sakura… why did I ever feel anything like that towards you despite all of the suffering you caused me? It seems so long ago, but back then I only went after you because you went after Sasuke and I wanted to spite him like some spoiled brat. I kept going after you despite what you put me through. When we were in the academy, the kids were actually gonna be nice to be and give me a chance, only for you to spread a rumor that I was related to Kurama because of my whisker marks, and then they started to look at me like I was a pariah, just like the grown ups. Then we became teammates, and Sasuke told me what you said about me and Tatsu being orphans. If it were just me then I wouldn't have minded very much, but to say that about Tatsu, the one I looked up to the most, was crossing the line. I just gave up on you altogether, and during the Land of Waves mission I lost sight of the reason why I went after you to begin with, because then Sasuke and I officially became friends, but I think that only made you hate me more. During all of our time in the academy, and until the mission to the Land of Waves, I never gave a moment's thought to who you were behind that pretty face. But then came the Chunin Exams and Orochimaru, and you openly hated me so much that you were willing to abandon us, and you even went so far as to drag Sasuke with you. When I heard that you had been arrested for trying to kill Ino, I felt… nothing, just indifferent. I never really understood exactly why I felt that way, and I still don't to be honest. Before I knew it, I had completely forgotten about her and I had fallen in love with Hinata. When I heard that she had become a member of the Akatsuki, I didn't even feel sad. I felt nothing but sorrow, sorrow that she had sunk so low, that she was no longer the Sakura I had once known. But despite all of the pain and suffering she's caused me, I'm grateful to her. She taught me the difference between what I thought was love and what actually is love. I can't let her sink any further than she already has, so I've made my decision. I'm going to take care of Sakura myself.'_

" **Hey."**

' _You haven't talked in awhile Kurama, any advice on this?'_

" **Just do what needs to be done, then ask Tatsu to teach you how to actually use that sword."**

' _Using the Crescent Moon Dance can't be that hard, you just make two Shadow Clones and slash like a maniac right?'_

" **...How have you not gotten yourself killed by your own stupidity yet?"**

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Madara stared at the crater left by Danzo's last move, as well as where Danzo's corpse lay in the center ' _That was a bit too close for my liking. A collateral damage sealing jutsu, it drags you into the corpse and completely seals you inside, permanently. He probably had it set to activate at the moment of his death.'_ he leapt down into the crater and warped Danzo's corpse away ' _Now I've finally recovered Shisui's eye, this will make winning the war that much easier.'_ then he activated his jutsu again.

Then Sakura emerged "So it's over? He's dead?"

"You saw for yourself didn't you?"

"But I lost both Kagami Uchiha and En no Gyoja, I underestimated them."

"They are the Five Kage after all."

"Well it doesn't matter, now that the Hokage is out of the picture destroying what's left of the Hidden Leaf Village should be that much easier."

"The Hidden Leaf huh? I wouldn't if I were you Sakura, don't be so hasty. You should go back to the hideout and repair that armor of yours, your scuffle with the Raikage, Shisui and Kazuma left a crack in it." he pointed to the crack across its chest "If you keep going like this you'll end up damaging it to the point where it's beyond repair. At this point you won't be able to accomplish anything if you go to the Hidden Leaf now."

"You shouldn't underestimate me, don't forget that I have _those jutsu_ at my disposal."

"True as that may be, you have to remember, patience is the most important step in bringing one's plans to fruition."

"Yeah yeah, you tell me that every time. But before I go back, there's one last thing I have to do-"

"I know I know, you want to take Naruto's head with your own hands. Fine, if you're so adamant about it then I'll take you to him." Madara warped Sakura away ' _Hopefully Naruto will just get rid of her, this girl is proving to be more trouble than she's worth.'_

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Naruto kept running in Sage Mode when he sensed it ' _Someone's coming!'_

Then Madara warped in front of him "I honestly didn't expect us to meet again so soon, Naruto Uzumaki."

"Madara… I'm in a hurry right now, what the hell do you want?" the Sage Mode disappeared from his eyes.

"Well in short, I'm a little bit eager at the moment to collect something I recently came across, but a certain associate of mine was too eager to wait to get her shot at you, so I figured I'd let you two play a little while I leave to take care of business. Do you remember what I said before?"

"You said you'd throw Sakura at me." then it hit him "Oh."

"That's right." he warped Sakura out of his eye.

' _Here we go, no turning back.'_

Sakura stood and shot Naruto a malicious smirk "It's been a long time hasn't it Naruto, we haven't seen each other since- oh yeah, since you and the others left me to rot in that prison cell four years ago."

"Sakura…"

"And now I'm going to make you pay for your betrayal." Sakura then charged forward.

Naruto got into a stance ' _I've gotta thank Bushy Brow for those taijutsu lessons?'_ he began easily dodging and blocking her attacks easily ' _I may not be having much trouble, but she's definitely gotten stronger. At this rate Ino might end up struggling, and who knows what other stuff she's got up her sleeve.'_ he leapt back and formed several quick hand seals " **Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!"** he summoned a large water dragon.

Sakura held out both hands, and the water dragon suddenly disappeared "Only someone as pathetic as you could some up with something so average."

"How the hell are you-?"

"Oh you wanna know how I can absorb your ninjutsu attacks? Well alright, since I'm going to kill you here I might as well tell you." she removed her Akatsuki robe, revealing a set of black armor underneath "This is Chakra Armor, the latest prototype that I stole, created by the scientists of the Land of Snow. This is also a special type of armor that increases the levels of chakra within the user's body, strengthening a handful of the more useful jutsu. A chakra barrier gathers around us as well, able to absorb the chakra of our enemies, and as a result both ninjutsu and genjutsu are rendered completely useless. Then again, you never had a talent for either of those to begin with. It also lets me use this." she formed hand seals " **Ice Style: Dragon vs Tiger!"** she summoned a large ice tiger.

" **Fire Style: Foxfire!"** Naruto breathed a large fox made of flames, melting the ice but also causing his jutsu to evaporate into steam "Why are you doing this Sakura?"

"You're asking why even now? Even you shouldn't be that stupid, I'm doing this to get my revenge! You and Tatsu turned everyone else against me, if you hadn't ratted me out for what happened in the Forest of Death then none of this would've happened! You're the ones to blame for my life going to hell! You, the Leaf, Orochimaru and the Akatsuki! Itachi killed Sasuke's clan, Orochimaru tried to mark Sasuke in the Forest of Death, and you for always trying to be better than Sasuke! You turned Sasuke against me, and then that swine Ino turned the entire village against me and got me put in a prison cell and left to rot! I could've healed Sasuke but you all got in my way, and I was forced to rely on Madara! Now you're going to pay for every wronging me!" she angrily formed hand seals " **Ice Style: White Lion Jutsu!"** she summoned a lion made of pure ice that shot forward

Naruto summoned two Shadow Clones as he leapt back, a Rasengan forming in the palm of his hand as one clone added the elemental chakra to it, while the other just disappeared "Okay I've gotta admit Sakura, that's pretty impressive."

"I don't need praise from you Naruto!"

"Who said I was praising you? Now it's my turn to show you my most powerful jutsu. **Wind Style: Rasenshuriken!"** he hurled the Rasenshuriken, slicing through the ice lion.

"A gigantic shuriken? Pathetic, even now you're skill copying Sasuke's moves! You never could measure up to him, and you never will! **Ice Style: White Lion Jutsu!"** she summoned another ice lion, colliding with the Rasenshuriken, sending both flying high and detonating in mid air, sending both of them reeling from the shockwave of the blast.

Naruto stopped himself with his Shadow Clones, which dissipated almost immediately after catching him ' _Those ice jutsu felt different from the ones Haku used, they somehow felt unnatural. That's it, her ice style jutsu must be coming from that armor she's wearing. All I have to do is destroy it and this will be that much easier.'_

Sakura emerged, heavily wounded but still ready for battle "Don't think you really have a shot of winning this battle you idiot, you might as well turn tail and run away like a coward."

"You mean what you did to me and Tatsu when we fought Orochimaru back in the Forest of Death?"

"Shut up! It's your fault for always trying to show off and make Sasuke and me look bad! Sasuke was rookie of the year and I was the top kunoichi, you should've just accepted your place under us and stayed the worthless trash you were always meant to be!"

"You have no one to blame for your cowardice but yourself." Naruto held out his hand, forming a Rasengan.

" **Ice Style: Wolf Fang Avalanche!"** Sakura summoned a pack of wolves made of ice and snow from the mountain behind her, causing an avalanche.

Naruto promptly leapt over the wolves and thrusted forward his Rasengan, ripping apart the one in front of him.

Sakura leapt back, her armor now sporting a minor crack "Too bad, and you almost had me there too, but it's time to end this game. I don't care if you did defeat Pain, you're still nothing but trash, a loser that will never amount to anything and will never be loved by anyone!" she leapt over the ice and formed a hand seal " **Ice Style: Black Dragon Blizzard!"** she thrusted her arm forward and a black snow dragon shot out of her armor, rocketing towards Naruto at high speeds, engulfing him and sending him crashing into a frozen lake.

Naruto was slowly sinking, his mind wandering in thought over what Sakura said ' _I'll never amount to anything? I'll never be loved by anyone? Sakura… you couldn't be more wrong… at one point, that would've hurt me to the core… at one point I was alone, hated by everyone in the village, but I worked hard and got stronger, I found people who accepted me for who I am, and it's only thanks to them that I've gotten this far… But you… you've threatened to kill them, and for me that's crossing the line…'_ orange pigments appeared around his eyes ' _I won't let you hurt them!'_

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Sakura stared at the water, her eyes showing nothing but disdain "Pathetic, just like I thought you'd be." she started walking away.

"SAKURA!" Naruto burst out of the frozen lake, radiating strength.

"Typical, you never know when to quit do you?"

"I just don't like to give up Sakura, there's a huge difference!"

"Fine, go ahead and be the gutsy idiot! It won't do you any good!" Sakura blitzed through more hand seals " **Ice Style: Twin Dragon Blizzard!"** she shot out two black snow dragons, one from each arm, creating a massive black tornado.

When it subsided, Naruto was nowhere in sight.

"There… I obliterated him… this ridiculous farce has finally come to an end!" she began laughing maniacally.

"The hell it is!"

Sakura dissipated the tornado and looked ahead to see Naruto standing before her, sword drawn and Sage Mode burning brightly "Why?! Why won't you just die?! Just give up already you worthless trash!"

"You give up Sakura." Naruto's Sage Mode disappeared, and the chakra surrounding his sword turned green "You give up on me ever giving up! **Sage Art: Leaf Style: Crescent Moon Dance!"** he charged in.

"It's not over until you're dead! **Ice Style: Black Dragon Blizzard!"** Sakura stuck out her arm, only sparks to fly out "What?!"

"This is the end Sakura!" and with that, the original slashed her down the middle, causing the armor's main power core to shatter "It's over Sakura."

"No…" despite being badly wounded Sakura formed one last hand seal " **Ice Style: Black Dragon Sacrifice."** her armor began glowing.

"Sakura, what are you doing?"

"What do you think? I just activated the self destruct on my armour! Even if I couldn't bring down the Hidden Leaf, I take comfort in knowing that I'll be taking you with me to the grave! Goodbye Naruto, and burn in hell where you belong you pathetic loser!" and with that, the area was engulfed in a white light, followed by an explosion.

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In his lab in his hideout, Madara discovered that Danzo had destroyed Shisui's eye before he had died, in order to prevent him from obtaining it.

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"Naruto! Naruto, snap out of it!"

Naruto opened his eyes, which widened when he saw what was in front of him "Sasuke…"

Sure enough, Sasuke stood in front of him, his Susanoo radiating purple chakra "I got a little worried so I rushed ahead of the others, and it's a good thing I did too. That explosion was comparable in power to your Rasenshuriken in Sage Mode, if you had been caught in it then I doubt you would've made it out in one piece."

Naruto stared at the massive crater left behind by the explosion "What about Sakura? Is she…?"

Sasuke looked down at a scroll on his waist as he retracted his Susanoo "The body in the crater was disfigured beyond recognition, if it wasn't for the pink hair then I never would've figured it was her."

"...I see." Naruto started walking back as he sheathed his sword "Let's go, Kakashi-sensei and the others must be waiting."

"Yeah, good idea." Sasuke followed after him "You did the right thing by ending this Naruto, you know that."

"I know, but… do you think I could've saved her?"

"...No, even you wouldn't be able to save Sakura after she had fallen that far."

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In the Hidden Leaf, Koharu and Homura had learned from Shikaku that the agents of the Foundation had been restless and agitated about something, so they decided to seek out Kazuma and Shisui since they had went with Danzo to the Land of Iron.

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Other developments were at play as well.

The Raikage and his escort return to their village, where they hold a council with their feudal lord explaining what occurred at the Five Kage Summit and what must now be done to confront the Akatsuki in the upcoming war.

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After Naruto and Sasuke met up with the others and Kakashi gave a scolding for running off on his own to finish things, the group was on their way back to the Hidden Leaf.

Kazuma suddenly stopped them along the way "Everyone, hold up."

"What's up?" asked Naruto "What's the matter?"

"Someone's coming."

Then three Foundation members showed up out of nowhere "Kazuma, Shisui, we need the two of you to tell us everything that happened."

"You three are ANBU from the Foundation. I'm sure you've already guessed at this point as to what happened."

"Then Lord Danzo is… gone?"

"I'm afraid so, he gave his life in an attempt to take Madara Uchiha and Sakura Haruno down with him. It failed, but he did seal away the reanimation of Kagami Uchiha, so he died an admirable death. Therefore, if you are all in agreement then I would like for us to discuss the future of the Foundation." he held out a hand towards Kakashi "With the new Lord Hokage here that is."

"What?!" Sasuke and the rest blurted out.

"We've already agreed that Kakashi Hatake here would be appointed."

"...We'll head back ahead of you and inform the rest of the village." and the Foundation members promptly took off.

Naruto and the others rounded on Kakashi "Hold on a minute, so you mean you're gonna be the next Hokage Kakashi-sensei?"

Kakashi nodded "That's how it looks, but I'm afraid that I don't really have a choice in the matter."

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Unknown to anyone, Kisame, who had swapped with a White Zetsu clone during his battle with Killer B, had hidden himself inside Samehada and in order to infiltrate the Hidden Cloud and gather intel.

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Naruto noticed Kakashi attaching messages to his ninja hounds "Hey Kakashi-sensei, what are you doing?"

"I'm sending messages to every Hidden Village." Kakashi told him "We want a united front, we need to share critical intel as early as we possibly can."

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At the same time, the Feudal Lords agreed to formally ratify the Allied Shinobi Force, then went to inform their Hidden Villages.

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Kin was worried "Sasuke… Do you think he got Naruto to agree with our decision?"

Kiba scoffed "Big talk for the one who's been an ice queen to Sasuke ever since he came back to the village."

"Kiba, shut up." Dosu promptly whacked him on the head "Kin, it won't do any good for anybody if you just sit around and worry about it." then he noticed a messenger bird in the skies above "Did something happen?"

"You could say that."

Dosu looked and saw Shikamaru approach "What do you mean?"

"Come on, we've gotta talk."

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After returning to the Hidden Sand with Temari and Kankuro, Gaara held a council meeting to discuss the events of the Five Kage Summit, and they were shocked to receive a message from Kakashi about Danzo being KIA, as well as Naruto being the one to kill Sakura.

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Dosu was surprised by what he heard "Wait a minute, so she really went so far as to attack the Five Kage Summit all by herself?"

Shikamaru nodded "From what I hear they're just about to make an official announcement, there's still a lot of confusion amongst the officials."

"So it's really true then, Sakura has stooped so low as to ally with the Akatsuki."

"She was with them, as in not anymore. Naruto did her in. This whole thing is turning out to be a real drag."

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Lee was waiting with Kin and Hinata outside the gates of the village "They're here."

Then Naruto and the others finally came up to them "Hey guys, we're back."

"Shikamaru told us about the situation about Sakura."

"Yeah. She's dead, she blew herself up in an attempt to take me with her and if Sasuke hadn't shown up when he did then she might've succeeded."

"I see."

"Naruto!"

Naruto looked to see Konohamaru and his gang running up to him "Hey guys."

"We've all been waiting for you, I just need to get a quick interview from you and then the Leaf newspaper will finally be all finished."

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot." Naruto ruffled his hair "But I've gotta make a report right now, so we'll have to do it later."

"What? You always say that, it's always later with you and then it never happens."

Naruto just walked off without a word.

' _Naruto…'_

"Konohamaru, you should say something too." Moegi told him.

"I think something happened…"

"What do you mean?"

"It feels like there's something different about Naruto now."

"What are you talking about? What do you mean different? I don't see anything different about him, he looks the same to me."

"He's just got a different feel to him, I can't really explain it."

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Kakashi had met up with Asuma to discuss the situation "So how's Lady Tsunade doing right now?"

Asuma shook his head "She's still unconscious, nobody's sure when she'll wake up."

"I see. Well if you'll excuse me, I need to go report to the elders." he started walking away.

"Kakashi the chain of command within the Hidden Leaf is in shambles right now, somebody has to restore order as soon as possible."

"Yeah, I know." then Kakashi left.

Once he was gone, Asuma pulled out a scroll ' _Well dad, I guess the time has come for me to follow in your footsteps in at least one way.'_

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Tatsu had finished explaining the events in the Land of Iron to Team 8, Team 10, Team Guy, and the former Sound Trio "And that's about it."

Shikamaru sounded incredulous "Sakura really did all of that?"

"Yep."

"That's truly unbelievable." Shino noted.

"Yeah."

"Well we've reached a decision too." Kiba told him "We've all sworn to eliminate Sakura ourselves."

"No need. Naruto beat you to the punch in the Land of Iron."

"Wait, _Naruto_ did Sakura in?"

"He defeated her, but from what he and Sasuke tell me she tried to take Naruto down with her."

"Damn."

"Tell me about it. The only thing is, being Naruto he feels responsible for this whole thing with Sakura."

"But there's no way he could've prevented this."

"Tell that to him."

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"Now even Danzo of all people…" Koharu muttered.

Homura nodded "What a shame, the more gifted they are the sooner they pass."

"We must convene a council meeting right away to determine the next Hokage."

"The formation of the Allied Shinobi Force will be delayed if we have no Hokage."

"Well then it can't be helped." she turned to Kakashi "We will recommend you for the position, especially since our ally the Hidden Sand has recommended you."

Kakashi nodded almost immediately "I am prepared."

"That didn't take much convincing." Homura noted.

"Of course, it is a bit out of character for me to be Hokage."

"It will be fine." Koharu assured "I'll go request a conference with the Feudal Lords, return home and prepare until you're called."

"There really isn't anything for me to prepare for."

"Kakashi." Homura stopped him "Let me just say one thing to the next Hokage. Danzo was ambitious but everything he did was for the sake of this village. Hiruzen in the light and Danzo in the dark, everything in the Hidden Leaf went so smoothly back then."

"Is that meant to be an excuse?"

"Only advice. Don't take on everything by yourself, you would do well to find a confident to stand beside you."

"I'll keep that in mind." then Kakashi left without another word.

"You and I are the only ones left from the olden days now."

Koharu nodded grimly "There is no telling what the fate of us shinobi will be."

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Naruto sat on the Fourth Hokage's head, lost in his thoughts ' _Was I too hasty in resolving to kill Sakura? Could I have saved her without having to fight her?'_ he looked down ' _Dad… if you were in my position, what would you have done?'_

"Hey."

Naruto looked to see Asuma sit down "Oh hey, what're you doing up here?"

Asuma breathed out a cigarette "Guy asked me to watch the finish line for some race across the village he's doing with Kakashi."

"Really? Now of all times? Seriously, there couldn't be a worst possible time."

"He knows that, and that's exactly why he's doing it now."

"What do you mean?"

"Guy knows that Kakashi won't have time for these things once he's Hokage, so he wants to put him to the test one last time before then."

"I see." Naruto leaned back.

"You're still down about this whole thing with Sakura aren't you?"

"Is it that obvious?"

"Even if they've gone rogue killing someone you once considered to be a comrade is never an easy thing, especially if they were your teammate and even more especially if they were your crush."

"More like blind worshipping for no good reason."

"Regardless, sometimes you've gotta make hard choices as a shinobi. Even if it hurts to kill a former comrade, don't forget that you still have comrades left to protect and you can't let them down because you're wallowing in your own self pity."

"...You know Asuma-sensei, you're pretty wise. Then again, I guess I shouldn't be surprised since you're the Old Man's son."

"With age comes wisdom Naruto, don't forget that."

"I won't."

"Hey Naruto!" then Kakashi suddenly raced up the Fourth's face alongside Guy and leapt over them.

"Hey Kakashi-sensei."

Asuma looked back to see them cross the finish line "Kakashi wins." he smirked when he saw Guy collapse in exasperation.

"What's he on?"

"Nobody knows."

"I'm just grateful Bushy Brow didn't turn out like that."

Then Kakashi came over "So Naruto, are you doing alright now?"

"Actually yeah, I think I'm gonna be fine."

"I see. That's good." Kakashi gave an eye smile "Hey tell you what. Meet me later after the meeting, I've got something I wanna show you."

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The time finally came.

Shikaku led Kakashi along with Kazuma, Asuma and the rest of the council towards the meeting hall "Thank you for accepting."

Kakashi nodded "Of course, though I'd feel a lot better if you were the one who would become Hokage Shikaku."

"Yeah right, I'm old enough to retire and have my son take over for me. You know that I'm in no position to do that."

"Yeah, I know."

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The time for the meeting came.

The Daimyo was increasingly exasperated "I can't believe it, Danzo has fallen to the Akatsuki as well?"

Kazuma nodded "Unfortunately my lord, that is the case. As much as I would like to mourn for his noble sacrifice, for now we must select the next Hokage."

"And who do you propose? You, Kazuma?"

"With all due respect my lord, I'm far too young for the position. Each one of us, myself included, is recommending Kakashi Hatake for the position."

"Oh yes, I know him. A very nice choice."

"Very well then. Kakashi Hatake, please enter."

Then Kakashi entered "You called."

"Yes, he's a very nice choice indeed." the Daimyo noted "Now then, Kakashi Hatake I officially appoint you… uh…"

"Is something the matter?" asked Kazuma.

"Well it's just that I'm not sure what number Hokage to appoint him."

"What do you mean what number?"

"Danzo was appointed as the Sixth Hokage but died before he could formally assume the office, and because of that I'm uncertain whether Kakashi should be named the Sixth Hokage or the Seventh." he received various shocked looks.

"But if Lord Danzo had never formally assumed the position then he was never officially Hokage, therefore Kakashi should be the Sixth."

The Daimyo listened to one of his ministers whispering in his ear for a good minute, and he eventually nodded "Very well then, Kakashi Hatake I hereby-"

"Excuse me!"

Kakashi and everyone else looked back to see Guy burst into the room "Guy?"

"I bring important news!"

"What is this intrusion? We are in the middle of a very important conference." the Daimyo pointed out.

"I apologize, but I have come to report a sudden change in events sir."

"Really? What kind of sudden change?"

"Lady Tsunade has awaken from her coma, there's no longer any need to appoint a Sixth Hokage."

"I see. Very well then."

Kazuma turned to an ANBU guarding the door "Send word to the rest of the villages, Lady Tsunade the Fifth Hokage is alive and well. We should also let the people of the Hidden Leaf know about this."

Kakashi suddenly felt very unnecessary "So then, is it alright if I go home now?"

Guy clasped a hand on Kakashi's shoulder "Well since you're free, why don't we go and get some sushi? We can see who can eat the most."

"...As thrilling as that sounds, can you hold off for about two hours. There's something I've gotta do that can't wait." and Kakashi walked off, leaving a very confused Guy standing alone behind him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Kakashi led Naruto up to the evacuation center, or the valuables warehouse to be more specific, on top of the Hokage Monument "Here we are."

Naruto looked around the inside of the valuables warehouse ' _Here again?_ I still don't get it Kakashi-sensei, why did you bring me all the way up here?"

"Just be patient, it won't be much longer now." Kakashi led Naruto further down "This is my storage space, this is where I kept something very precious." he opened up a box and pulled out a crimson katana, which he then held out to Naruto "Here."

Naruto slowly gripped the sword "This is…"

"It's called Crimson Death, appropriately named considering it belonged to your mother."

Naruto froze at that "My mom…?"

"Yeah, she was like an older sister figure to me, and your father was my sensei."

"Kakashi-sensei…" a few tears spilled from his eyes "I can't begin to tell you how much this means to me."

Kakashi put a hand on Naruto's shoulder and gave his classic eye smile "How about this: Let's head down to Ichiraku Ramen to celebrate Lady Tsunade's recovery, and I'll tell you all about your parents and what they were like. Sound good?"

"Yeah… Yeah, that'd be great."

 **A/N:**

 **I was trying to make Danzo go out in a noble light, symbolizing him trying to redeem himself. I did it as best as I could so be honest, how well did it turn out? And if you're going to spew hate for me making Danzo somewhat noble, please don't even bother to review.**

 **I thought having Naruto be the one to take out Sakura would be a good way to give him some bonus character development.**

 **The Crimson Death sword was inspired by the Shinobi Saga, a Dragon Ball Z/Naruto crossover fanfic written by master of the unknown. It's discontinued but it's really good, if you like that stuff then check it out.**

 **I added in that little thing about Kushina's sword because I thought it'd be awesome for Naruto to learn to wield a sword, and I wanted to give Naruto and Kakashi a little bonding moment since I thought they didn't have anywhere near enough of those in the original series.**

 **If any of you have complaints about Sakura using Land of Snow stuff, TOUGH SHIT! It was either that or give her the right arm full of Sharingan.**


	24. Adventure At Sea

Shizune was watching Tsunade put it away in spades "Goodness, slow down Lady Tsunade."

"It's-not-enough." Tsunade got out between mouthfuls "My-chakra-hasn't-returned-to-normal." she finally swallowed "Go get me some more food and quickly, relax and I'll turn into an old hag again."

Then Shizune suddenly gasped.

"Oh no, it's happening!" she kept putting it away.

"We've completely depleted the Hokage Quarters Supply Storage but don't worry, I'll just go and requisition some more provisions for you. Please just take a short break."

Then Tsunade started eying Tonton in a very uncomfortable way.

Shizune noticed this and immediately freaked "No absolutely not, what in the world are you thinking Lady Tsunade? There's no way you can have Tonton!"

"What are you talking about?"

"...Nothing."

"As amusing as this is, we've got more important things to talk about at the moment."

Tsunade looked and saw Shisui standing in the doorway "So you really are still alive after all… Shisui Uchiha."

"Yes, and I'm glad to see you're looking well Lady Tsunade."

"I'm not there yet, I'm just getting started."

"...You're really just getting started even after all of that? Nevermind, that's a discussion that can wait for another time. Anyway Kakashi seemed pretty relieved too when he heard, he came a lot closer to becoming the Sixth Hokage then he would've liked. You know him, he really isn't the Hokage type when you think about it. Given our current situation, we need someone with much more influence to be Hokage like you."

"I've gotta admit I'm shocked the Allied Shinobi Force, I'm amazed the Tsuchikage and Raikage agreed to cooperate."

"They took a little bit of convincing, but Lord Shibuki of the Hidden Waterfall acted as a sort of mediator. Besides, that only tells you just how bad the situation is."

"Madara Uchiha… is he really still alive?"

"We didn't have proof during the time of the Uchiha massacre, and we still don't have any proof now. Still though, that's how it seems considering what they're planning to do."

"It's another war huh? I can't believe the misfortunes of the Uchiha have now spread so far as to torment all shinobi." then she gained the hardened gaze of a war veteran "I will call for a meeting with the council, we must prepare for war."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

At the same time, Tatsu and Sasuke were in a discussion with Lee "So what's got you so freaked out?"

Lee sighed "That battle, the one where Naruto and I fought against Pain. When Naruto stood up against Pain to protect Hinata, the darker parts of Kurama's chakra were influenced by the immense rage he felt. I could feel the anger, the rage, the sorrow, all of it was just pouring out of him. I could barely feel anything of Naruto's own will as it was."

"And don't forget that he destroyed the First Hokage's necklace in his rage, if Kurama's dark chakra were to run loose now then not even Yamato would be able to stop it."

"You guys think I don't know that?"

Tatsu looked and saw Naruto coming up to them, a crimson sword strapped to his back "Look man you know how risky it is to go into battle with Kurama inside you, that's a power you still can't control very well."

"Well I'm not the only one with that problem."

Tatsu's comeback died in his throat.

"In case you've forgotten, you've got overwhelming power on Tailed Beast levels inside of you too. Don't try to chew me out until you get yourself under control."

"...Yeah, you're right. I still can't control the power of the Tenseigan, I haven't even tried to use it in almost a year. As it is, I wouldn't stand a chance against the power of the Tailed Beasts. The only one who can control that power is my brother, and I have no idea how he pulled that off."

"Did he give any kind of hint?" asked Sasuke "Anything at all that could help you learn to control that power?"

"All I know is it was one mission involving the Hidden Cloud, and when he got back he said that he had completely mastered the Tenseigan."

"I see."

"He didn't give any kind of clue about-" then Naruto disappeared.

"What the hell?"

"Looks to me like a Reverse Summoning."

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At his hideout in the Mountain's Graveyard, Madara found himself approached by none other than Kabuto, and immediately went to kill him, but Kabuto protected himself by using none other than the Reanimation Jutsu to bring back 5 fallen Akatsuki members, them being Itachi, Sasori, Deidara, Kakuzu and Nagato.

He offered to join forces with Madara by reviving anyone he wished using the Reanimation Jutsu, and when Madara threatened to refuse he brought up a certain sixth casket that ended up leaving Madara visibly disturbed, forcing him to accept.

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At the same time, Anko and her team were being led towards Kabuto and Madara's location, apparently on purpose.

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Koharu was left incredulous at what Tsunade was telling her "You're saying that the Fourth Great Ninja War?"

Homura seemed skeptical "Even though we're talking about Madara Uchiha, can he really take on all of the Five Great Nations?"

Tsunade slammed her hand down on the desk "You need to wake up and face the facts, Madara Uchiha is the leader of the Akatsuki! Just one of them was able to destroy the entire Hidden Leaf Village, don't tell me that you've already forgotten about that!"

"I must agree with Lady Tsunade on this." Kazuma spoke up "The Akatsuki already have six of the Tailed Beasts from the One Tail to the Five Tails as well as the Seven Tails, if they intend to use them as military weapons then we must consider their strength to be far greater than what even Nagato was capable of."

"And if that's the case then the Five Great Nations, no more like the entire world, is in grave danger of total destruction. We cannot delay action."

"Very well." Koharu conceded "But where should we strike? Do you know Madara's current location?"

"We do have a general idea of the location." Shikaku told her "The Mitarashi Unit recently reported in, and they've confirmed spotting someone who fits the description of Madara Uchiha."

"What, they have?"

"Yes, and right now they're working to gather more conclusive intel."

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In the Hidden Cloud, the village council was meeting to discuss gathering information from the other villages.

Killer B was also present as well, though he was focusing more on rap lyrics, and unknown to him or anyone, Kisame was spying on the meeting from inside Samehada.

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Tsunade summoned Kakashi, Kazuma, Shisui, Tatsu, Sasuke, Lee, Ino and Shikamaru to inform them of the situation "Very soon I will make the announcement to the entire village about the coming of the Fourth Great Ninja War."

Tatsu leaned against a wall and sighed "It's really hard to believe when you think about it."

"What do you mean?"

"Everything about this situation is completely insane. Firstly, Madara Uchiha is still alive and now he's declared war. Secondly, the Five Great Nations and the Land of Iron have joined forces to fight off against an extremely dangerous foe in an all out conflict unlike anything this world has ever seen before. I always figured that the Akatsuki would be bad news down the road, but I never thought they would go so far as to declare war against the entire world."

"Yes. When the fighting breaks out, many shinobi will wrestle with doubt and fear. It will be your job to keep a close watch on their mental state. Circulate among the teams and report anything unusual, do not hide anything. Understood?"

"Got it, you can count on me."

"And one more thing, all of you be sure to keep an eye on Naruto. I cannot afford to have him act recklessly, he is the goal for the Akatsuki in this war."

"I'll try but that won't be easy seeing how he disappeared about an hour ago."

"What?! It's impossible for Naruto to be kidnapped from this village, I want him found right now!"

"Will you calm down, he's not in any danger."

"And how do you know this?"

"Because he disappeared in a puff of smoke, he just got reverse summoned to Mount Myoboku. That's all."

"Oh." then Tsunade promptly smacked him upside the head.

"What the hell was that for?"

"Don't scare me like that!"

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Tatsu was later wandering through town with Kazuma, rubbing his sore cheek "She didn't have to get all bitchy."

"You didn't have to scare her half to death." Kazuma pointed out "She's already got enough on her plate with the war coming up."

"She's not the only one with a lot on her mind." Tatsu gripped his fist "I'm not one to come across as weak, but I know that if I were go to war against the Akatsuki right now then I'd be killed in an instant."

"But you've already mastered Sage Mode and acquired the power of the Genryu, what else can you do?"

"You know exactly what else I can do." Tatsu shot him a deadly serious look "I need to master the power of the Tenseigan, it's the only way I'll be able to stand up to Madara and the power of six Tailed Beasts."

"Are you really planning to go after Madara straight from the get go?"

"In these kinds of conflicts, the best way to defeat the enemy is to cut their power off at the source." then he stepped back, causing the falling Naruto to hit the ground "And what the hell happened to you?"

Naruto stood up and let out a sigh, then started walking with them "The Geezer Sage reverse summoned me to Mount Myoboku."

"Just like I thought, so what did he want?"

"Well he brought me to meet with the Giant Gramps Sage said he had something he wanted to tell me."

"Hold on, you met with the Great Lord Elder of Mount Myoboku?"

"Yeah, he told me he had some kind of prophecy."

"Like the one he foretold to Jiraiya about you being the child of prophecy. So what exactly did the old guy tell you?"

"Well he said that I was gonna end up going to some really cool resort and meet some kind of octopus and a slug there."

"...What?"

"Those were his exact words."

"And what the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Well apparently this octopus is supposed to cooperate with me and the slug somehow, Giant Gramps Sage didn't know all of the details either."

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Later, Kazuma sat on a rooftop, staring up at the sky "It sure is quiet."

"I'll say." Ayame laid down beside him, resting her head on his chest.

"So peaceful."

"What are you talking about? There's no way it's peaceful, not even remotely. Sure the village is being rebuilt after Pain attacked and Lady Tsunade has finally come out of her coma after like a month, but don't forget that there's going to be an all out war against the Akatsuki, and more importantly, against Madara."

Kazuma bolted up "Wait hold on, how did you know that?"

"Don't take me for an idiot Kazuma, I can tell by watching the jonin prepare."

"I guess so. It's true, we've got war right at our doorstep."

"Yeah, I figured that would be the case if Madara was involved."

"This fight is going to be a conflict unlike anything this world has ever seen before. Just think about it, in order to combat the Akatsuki the Five Great Shinobi Villages, along with the Hidden Waterfall and the Land of Iron, are all coming together for the first time. It's the start of the Fourth Great Ninja War of all things."

"The Fourth Great Ninja War… be honest with me Kazuma, you're scared aren't you?"

"Well of course I am, this is war for crying out loud. Don't forget that Itachi and I witnessed a battle during the war when we were little kids who hadn't even entered the academy yet, and I'm still terrified."

"Do you think Itachi would be too if he were still alive?"

"Without a doubt. But this time it doesn't matter how scared we might be or how hard it will be, don't forget that our enemy is the Akatsuki and just one of them was strong enough to destroy the entire village."

"Yeah. I was out on a mission during the attack, I wish I could've helped."

"I feel the same. Still though, even after everything that's happened Madara's abilities are still completely shrouded in mystery. Even worse than that he's got the power of six of the Tailed Beasts, if he tries to unleash all of them at once then even the Allied Shinobi Force will stand a chance even if they all come together. Right now the entire shinobi world is at stake in this fight, so each and every shinobi will have to give 120% or we won't have a hope in hell of victory."

"Including us. Look Kazuma, I know you don't like me fighting but-"

"I know, this time it's unavoidable. Truth be told, I'm actually counting on you. Back during our time as chunin, you always were stronger than Itachi when he wasn't using his Sharingan. That's gotta count for something."

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Tatsu entered Tsunade's office "You wanted to see me?"

Tsunade nodded "Yes I did, the Mizukage has called for a meeting of the leaders of the Allied Shinobi Forces in three days time. I want you and Shikaku to by my escorts."

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The day of the meeting had come, and all of the Kage, as well as Yahiko, Mifune and Shibuki, had met up in the Hidden Mist.

"You all came quickly." Mei noted.

"A situation like this calls for swift action." Shibuki pointed out.

Onoki seemed skeptical about Tsunade being there "Listen princess Tsunade, are you sure you're up to this? You know you should've handed the reigns over to someone a little bit younger, you're getting way too old for this."

Tsunade let out a snort "You should really speak for yourself you old fence sitting geezer, you're the last person I want to hear this from."

"Please refrain from arguing." Mei told them "Setting aside the whole mess with Danzo, I'm so relieved to see you back in the seat of Hokage Lady Tsunade."

"Let us be done with greetings." Mifune told him "I believe it is best if we proceed right to main business. First on the agenda are the jinchuuriki of the Six, Eight and Nine Tails. Then we will move on to the information on the stronghold and battle strength of the enemy."

"Some of my shinobi found a location that could very well be the enemy's hideout, but it could also be a trap." Tsunade told them "I think it's best if we gather more intel first."

"And we've also organized multiple scouting parties." A told her "They're collecting data as we speak. We must pool and share the intel from each village with each other."

"What about forming an entirely separate unit within the Allied Shinobi Force specifically for handling intel?" asked Yahiko.

Onoki grinned "Now that's a good idea. Share and share alike, that's what I always say."

Mei nodded "Yes of course, if our nations become driven by greed and self interest then clearly the Akatsuki will pull the rug from under us before we even start."

"So where will we hide away the three crucial jinchuuriki?"

Tsunade's head snapped towards them "Hide them away?"

"What's the matter?" asked Shibuki.

"Naruto, Bee and Utakata can lend us battle strength, why hide them away?"

Onoki let out a sigh "I had the same thought at first, but the goal of our enemies in this war is to possess those two. Considering what could happen, we cannot let them participate. That's what we all decided at the last meeting, of course you were still unconscious princess."

"Our enemy is Madara Uchiha, hold back our strength even a little and we'll lose any chance we have to win, and we won't get another! We must hit them hard!"

"The aim of the Five Great Nations in this war is to protect those three." Gaara told her "Your sole descent as Hokage is not enough, in this case the majority shall rule."

"Listen you stripling, Naruto is-"

"I know him quite well, he takes far too many risks especially when it comes to protecting his friends. That is why."

"Before we discuss military strength, the Five Kage must reach a unanimous consensus or we'll be guaranteed to lose." Shibuki pointed out.

Tatsu let out a sigh "I have to agree with them, letting them out onto the battlefield is way too risky unless it's absolutely necessary. Besides, they aren't the only heavy hitters we have in this war."

"...Fine." Tsunade relented, albeit very reluctantly.

"The slug princess is back to her impudent self." Onoki snarked "That retort is proof that she's well."

"So what's our plan then?" asked Tatsu "Where are we hiding them anyway? It's not like we can put them in any of the villages, so does anyone have any ideas?"

"Sasuke Uchiha hid Utakata at the home of the summoning hawks for months and that worked out quite well." Mei pointed out.

"Yeah but we need a place that can keep them hidden without them finding out about anything going on in the war, I know from personal experience that summoning animals can't keep a secret to save their lives. So, any suggestions?"

A nodded "I've got just the place in mind, it lies inside the Hidden Cloud which hasn't produced any members of the Akatsuki so far."

"Which you like to keep reminding us of."

"I set this place aside just in case."

"Alright, let's give this place a shot."

Mei nodded "Very well, onto the next objective."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A stood on the roof of the Mizukage building with Tatsu "So why did you of all people need to speak privately with me?"

"Because I need to ask you for two favors." Tatsu told him "One is on behalf of Lady Tsunade, the other is for me alone."

"Fine, what is it?"

"From what I understand your younger brother Killer B has complete control over the power of the Eight Tails, I was hoping he could do the same for Naruto and teach him to harness and control the power of the Nine Tails."

"Wouldn't that be convenient, if that brat Naruto manages to gain complete control over the Nine Tails then he would be the ultimate weapon for the Hidden Leaf. Do you honestly believe that I would ever agree to that?"

"If we wanted to go against your village after the end of the war then I'd just show up at your door, enter Sage Mode and shove a Rasengan up your ass. But this isn't then, we're dealing with the here and now, and right now we can't afford to be arguing about our own interests. We're facing Madara Uchiha, the man even the Fourth Hokage couldn't beat. We'll eventually be forced to use Naruto and the others, at this point even the four aces we have now won't be enough in the long run and it will be far too late if we just put it off."

"You shouldn't make threats like that, is that any way to ask someone for a favor?"

"Says the man who barks like an angry dog 70% of the time and doesn't know how to use the door."

"...Putting that aside for the moment, you do make a good point. I know too, because I myself considered it a long time ago."

"What exactly are you getting at?"

"Where I'm sending those two is much more than just some secret remote place where we can hide them away, I said I'd set it aside didn't I? A long time ago when we were younger, I trained on that island with B. It's where he learned to control the power of the Eight Tails."

"...I see."

"So what about that second favor you mentioned earlier?"

"Well that's the thing. When I was younger, my brother mentioned gaining complete mastery over his Tenseigan. I was hoping you could show me exactly how he did it, so I can learn it as well. I know for a fact that I'm going to need it in order to survive this war and protect the people I care about."

"...This place where I trained with B so he could control the Eight Tails, that's also where your brother mastered his eyes."

"Really? Wait, so why did you show that place to my brother anyway? Our villages weren't exactly on the best of terms back then."

"Because Kazuma Kamikaze reminded me of a certain shinobi I faced a long time ago and had great respect for. He even mastered that man's two signature jutsu, and created two himself."

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Tatsu explained this to Tsunade, Asuma, Fu and Kazuma "I think we should take the Raikage's word on this, me mastering my Tenseigan and Naruto mastering Kurama's chakra will be a huge help in winning the war if need be."

Tsunade nodded "I agree, but we need to send at least a few highly capable shinobi. I'll send you, Yamato, Lee, Shisui, Yahiko and Kazuma."

"That's it?"

"Yes, why?"

"It's just… nevermind."

"What?"

"He wanted to bring Ino along." Fu told her.

"I figured that was the case, unfortunately I'll have to refuse this time."

"You don't trust him to keep it in his pants." she received incredulous and surprised looks from the others "What?"

"To put it bluntly, no I don't." Kazuma said dryly.

"I'm not some man whore like Jiraiya was." Tatsu pointed out "I think you and Hayate-sensei beat more than enough etiquette and morals into me by now."

"I'm well aware of that, but we never directly addressed certain issues in that regard."

"And what the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Can I get in on this conversation?" Asuma cut in "I may be fond of Tatsu, but I'd personally beat him within an inch of his life if he forced anything like that on Ino. With all due respect Lady Tsunade, while you may be Hokage the fact is that Ino is my student and I have a say in whether or not she goes. Frankly, I think you should let her go. She can help train Naruto in water style jutsu and can train with Tatsu and Kazuma. After all, if Tatsu's negative instincts should awaken from overusing the Tenseigan then she's one of the few things that could stop him from going on a rampage."

"Ino is not going." Tsunade growled "I need her for missions here."

"I personally volunteer to take her place, I'm a more skilled combatant and Kin can cover for any medical duties she may have."

"...Fine. Kazuma, please go and retrieve your brother's girlfriend so I can tell her where she's going."

"Understood milady." Kazuma disappeared in a green flash.

Then Tatsu spoke "Now comes the real hard part. We still have to figure out a way to get Naruto to go along with this."

Tsunade gained a devious smirk "I think I can find a way to get him to cooperate."

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Naruto was practically drooling at what he was hearing "An S-rank mission? No way, you're giving me a big assignment like that?"

Tsunade nodded "That's right, it's a mission only you can undertake. You can Yamato will go to a sight in the Hidden Cloud."

"So that place is the resort?"

"The prophecy of the Great Lord Elder was correct, it seems that is the place he had foreseen."

"Then you're saying I'm really gonna meet the octopus and slug guys on this island? I've gotta say that I kind of feel bad, everyone's so busy and I get to go to some swanky resort and relax-"

"Shut up you idiot!" Tatsu smacked him on the back of the head "We're going on an S-rank mission not taking a vacation!"

"Yeah I know, I was just joking around. You don't have to get all angry about it."

"I can't afford not to be. Look Naruto, the fact of the matter is that we're standing on the brink of war which is why we're going on a mission like this to begin with. Now when we reach the location you're following Yamato's orders, got it?"

"Alright, I understand. You can count on me for this one Tatsu, I'm on the job."

"You better be."

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Tatsu entered Limbo with Naruto and Ino "Alright, here's the deal. From what Yamato tells me we've got at least a week before we make any stops. The time dilation here in Limbo makes a full day less than 5 minutes out there, and since we don't get tired, hungry or thirsty, we can train in here for days on end without any worries."

"So what's the plan then?" asked Naruto.

"Simple, I'm teaching you two kenjutsu. Naruto, you've got that red sword that Kakashi gave you. Ino, you've been working on mastering the Water Slicing Blade. Oh, and place this in your left hand." he held out a chakra paper "Your water nature is remarkably strong, but we need to figure out your second nature before the war."

"Good idea." Ino held the paper in between her fingers, and it crinkled.

"Okay good, that means you've got a lightning nature. I'll train Naruto in perfecting the Crescent Moon Dance first, in the meantime you go with Kazuma and learn Purple Thunder and one of the lightning jutsu we created with help from Kakashi. The Thunder Panther jutsu."

"Is that the same as his Lightning Beast Running Jutsu?"

"This is more specific and refined, and it uses a lot less chakra. After that you'll learn my brother's Thunderbolt jutsu, then once you've mastered that I'll teach you the Crescent Moon Dance in conjunction with the Water Slicing Blade."

Then Yahiko suddenly showed up and looked around "Woah, so this is what Limbo looks like. Jiraiya-sensei mentioned it to me once or twice, but we never got to come here."

"Oh hey Yahiko, listen you mind helping Naruto train whenever I'm teaching Ino?"

"Yeah sure, no problem. Hey by the way, Yamato wanted me to tell you guys that we're taking a little detour. Lee's really seasick and he's about to start blowing chunks all over the place."

"Knowing Lee, that sounds about right."

"We'll be docking in about an hour in the real world. Go ahead and train until then." then he departed.

"Alright, that gives us a little bit over 2 weeks to train." Tatsu drew his Dragon Blade and entered Sage Mode "Come on guys, let's get to it."

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After about 2 weeks of training in Limbo, really an hour in the real world, the group set for land, dragging a horribly seasick Lee with them.

Naruto let out a sigh "Come on Bushy Brow, get a grip already will you?"

"Hey Naruto, guys, over here!"

Naruto and the rest looked up to see Dosu, Sasuke, Kin and Konan waving "What the hell are you guys doing all the way out here?"

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They got to talking and sharing their stories.

"That's about it." Tatsu finished explaining.

Dosu sighed "The same thing happened to us, those waves were worse than humanly possible."

"Tell me about it, and for Lee that multiplies the effects by like 10."

"So you came here to let Lee recover?" Konan guessed.

"Pretty much yeah. Hey by the way I've been wondering, is the Hidden Rain gonna participate in the war?"

Yahiko shook his head "Absolutely not, the Hidden Rain has barely managed with the last two wars and we can't afford to have it take part, especially not after what Madara and the Akatsuki had put it through."

"I guess that makes sense." then he turned to Konan "So what are you guys doing all the way out here? You on a mission?"

Konan nodded "That's right. Lady Tsunade assigned me and the other three to come out here and she wanted us to help stock up on herbs that could be used for medicine and food pills. This land, the Nagasa Island, is apparently a treasure trove of medicinal herbs."

Yahiko grinned "That actually sounds really cool."

"Say you all can't set sail again until Lee gets over his sea sickness, why don't all of you come and help us out? It's just gathering herbs, nothing too difficult."

"Sure why not, not like we've got anything else to do."

"I'll help too, Naruto and Ino are too busy training." he jerked a thumb over to where Naruto and Ino sat meditating "Alright, let's go." he started to follow them back to the grassier areas, but quickly noticed Sasuke lagging behind "You coming with us or what?"

Sasuke cringed "I think I'll pass."

"Kin's still mad at you for leaving?"

"What do you think?"

"I think you should quit acting like a pansy and just talk to her already."

"And say what? That I'm sorry for leaving the village and joining the guy she feared and despised more than anyone or anything in the world? You really think she'd go for that?"

"Sasuke I am not going to waste my time being the jackass who plays love guru."

"That doesn't help."

"Just take her in your arms and apologize, clearly she's still in love with you so of course she'll forgive you if you just man up and tell her you're sorry. Besides, if that doesn't work then you could always one shot Lee and go for Fu."

"...Never say that again. But fine, I'll give it a shot."

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They reached a large field where the girls started looking for some other medicinal herbs they could use, with Tatsu getting away to the point where he wouldn't be in the way, but could still eavesdrop.

"Alright, Dosu search over on this side and Konan you search over there." Kin directed them on where to look for herbs.

Sasuke walked up to her, looking nervous "Uh, hey Kin?"

"Yeah?" she didn't look up from where she was herb gathering.

"I'm s-"

"Hey Kin, come and see this!" Konan called.

"Coming!" Kin walked away.

Sasuke sighed ' _Well that couldn't have gone worse.'_

Then Tatsu came back over, practically falling over laughing "What the hell was that supposed to be?"

"Oh shut up you idiot, we can't all date the girl we're into for more than three years before we realize we were!"

"Very funny. I can't believe I'm saying this but I've gotta agree with what Jiraiya was saying before, just find a secluded spot and make it the greatest night of your life."

Sasuke promptly smacked him upside the head.

"Yeah that's what I get for trying to take advice from Jiraiya. Fine, let me take the lead from here on. Hey Kin, can you come over here for a second?"

"Sure." then Kin came over "What's up?"

"This." he promptly grabbed both of them by the back of the head and slammed them into each other, making sure that their lips would connect "You're welcome." and he promptly walked away.

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About a week passed, and things were uneventful.

Naruto just sat on the ledge, fishing uncaringly and unenthusiastically "I know everything is supposed to go right on a trip, but then everything just ends up getting so boring."

Tatsu sat beside him, just as bored "I know what you mean, Shisui and Kazuma have been hogging our training area in Limbo for hours. God only knows what they're up to."

"You shouldn't sound so disappointed." Ino pointed out from where she was sunbathing on the deck in a violent bikini, showing off her curves and DD-cup breasts "Everything going well on a mission is a good thing, remember?"

Naruto groaned "Yeah I know, but it's so boring! I wonder how everyone else is doing back in the Hidden Leaf. Maybe one of them will come by again."

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Hinata was hard at work training in the practice field ' _I have to get stronger for this war, I have to protect Naruto.'_

"I see you're hard at work with training."

Hinata looked to see a girl around her age with short black hair standing by a tree, Sharingan active "Yes, I have to get stronger-"

"If you want any chance of surviving in this war, right?"

"Yes, and… something else. Oh, I'm Hinata Hyuga. Nice to meet you."

"The name is Rukia, Rukia Uchiha. You know this war is supposed to center on Naruto Uzumaki, one of the two village heroes."

"I wonder how he's doing on his mission."

"He most likely understands that he needs to hone his skills as well, just because he's on a mission doesn't mean he can slack off."

"You're right." then she noticed something.

Her caretaker Ko was standing on the other side of the training field waving to her "Lady Hinata, we'd best be going soon."

"Oh yes, right."

"What for?" asked Rukia.

"We have a big clan meeting to discuss our role in the war. Goodbye, nice meeting you." and she left.

"Rukia." another voice was heard.

Rukia looked and saw her brother Byakuya standing a short ways away "Brother."

"The time has come, we must go or we'll be late."

"Right."

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Sasuke sat in front of the 13 other remaining Uchiha "As the last of the Uchiha clan, we play an important role here in the Hidden Leaf. You should all expect to be given duties pertaining to combat once the impending Fourth Great Ninja War finally begins. Assignments are going to very, but in a crisis we will need one person to lead and unify the clan. I've been assigned to fight elsewhere, the same going with Shisui. Byakuya Uchiha, please step forward."

Byakuya stepped forward "Yes?"

"Aside from myself and Shisui, you are the strongest of all of the Uchiha and the only one aside from us who has awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan. The entire clan is well aware of your capabilities in battle, and that is why I want you to lead the clan on the front lines."

Byakuya bowed "I understand, I will protect the honor of our clan with my life."

"I'm counting on you. This meeting is adjourned."

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Asuma sat with Yugao outside her home "So how are you hanging in there? You sure you're doing alright?"

Yugao sighed "Well since I can't serve as captain anymore for obvious reasons, my career as a shinobi is pretty much over."

"Kurenai is pretty much the same, and now Team 8 has been disbanded and they're all scattered doing their own thing. She feels pretty bad about it like she's let them down."

"It can't be helped, but it anybody is to blame then it would be you."

Asuma blushed slightly "Yeah, I guess so."

Then Sasuke came along "Oh hey Asuma."

"Hey Sasuke."

"Yugao."

"You seem so busy." Yugao noted.

"Yeah I was just on a mission, but I don't have it as rough as people like Lady Tsunade or Kakashi."

"So you were out of the village then?" asked Asuma.

"Yeah, I went with Dosu, Kin and Konan to gather some herbs and we ran into Tatsu and the others."

"You did?"

"Yeah and don't worry, Ino's doing just fine. Oh yeah that reminds me, Lady Tsunade wanted to see you about something. Hinata too."

"Really? What about?"

"No idea, you should probably go and ask her."

"Fine by me, later." and he left.

"He seems kind of eager."

"He's been that way for the past few months." Yugao noted.

"I've noticed. So have you decided on a name yet? For the baby I mean."

"You know, I've been giving that a lot of thought."

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Hinata came into the Hokage's office "Lady Tsunade."

In her place was Shizune, dealing with a mountain of paperwork "What were they thinking, how could they let it end up like this?"

"Excuse me, where's Lady Tsunade?"

"Oh hi, well she stepped out… Let me see, where is she supposed to be right now? Oh yes, she's scheduled to be with the Cypher Corps, but I doubt that things are on schedule."

"I'll go there." Hinata bowed "Thank you." and she left.

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Shiho shook her head "Frankly, Lady Tsunade left already."

Hinata nodded "Oh I see, too bad."

"The Cypher Corps has been very busy working on a secret code that's going to be used by the Allied Shinobi Force, we got chewed out because we're running behind schedule. Anyway, she said she was going to check on the situation with the food supply next."

"Thanks, I'll go see." Hinata then left.

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"Sorry, but Lady Tsunade has already come and gone." Fu told her.

Hinata looked down "I see."

"Hey Hinata, you here to help us out or what?" Kiba called.

"Oh no, sorry I'm not."

"Oh well that's just perfect. I wish she would send us some help, we can barely keep up with all of these food deliveries as it is."

"We need as much as we can get." Fu pointed out "We don't know how long this war is going to last, it could be years for all we know."

"Yeah yeah, I know."

Then Fu turned back to Hinata "You know, Lady Tsunade did mention that she was going to head over and check on ninja tools."

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Tenten shook her head "Well she was here a little while ago but she left already. Try with the medical unit."

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Kin shook her head "Sorry, but Lady Tsunade couldn't make it. I was just told that I should submit a report to her. Dosu back there has a good amount of knowledge about herbs and medicines, and Choji was put in charge of food pills."

"Oh hey, there you guys are!"

Kin and Hinata both looked and saw Tenten running up to them "Oh hey Tenten, what can I do for you?"

"I was thinking, what do you say we all get together tonight and do it up a little. We can all head over to BBQ."

Then Dosu poked his head out along with a drooling Choji "Actually something like that would sound nice, a chance to unwind before such a huge battle takes place."

"Sorry boys, not really, but none of you men are invited. I think it's time that all of us had a girls only get together. All of us are gonna have a girl's night out!"

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Hinata had finally tracked Tsunade, only to be blown off and dismissed almost immediately when she found her.

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Then Tsunade found Asuma leaning against a tree "Asuma."

"Sasuke said you wanted to see me?" Asuma pointed out.

"From what Shikamaru tells me you've been training to earn the cooperation of Enma, the summon used by Sarutobi-sensei."

"The invasion was an eye opener, I've got a family now and I've gotta protect them."

"I see. Asuma, just be sure not to overdo it and get yourself killed." then she walked away without another word.

' _I wouldn't if I could afford not to, but with war just around the corner it's not like I really have a choice.'_

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"So BBQ reopened?" asked Kin.

"Yeah, I made us a reservation." Tenten looked over the menu "Oh check it out, beef tongue with salt!"

"And the new menu has a special ladies combo, it's such a good deal and you know I can't resist a good deal."

"So then, did all of you ladies decide on drinks?" she received nods from the girls present, them being Fu, Hinata, Kin, Izumi and Ayame "Alright then. Excuse me, we're ready to order!"

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On the other side of the restaurant, Choji had gathered up Asuma, Sasuke, Kiba, Shino, Neji, Shikamaru, Dosu and Zaku as well "Thanks for coming guys, I figured that if the girls were having a get together then it would only be fair that the boys should have one too. Let's pig out to our heart's content!"

Asuma sighed ' _That's what I'm afraid of.'_

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Tsunade had finally snapped from the pressure and had finally gone out drinking, much to the dismay of Shizune.

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Tenten proposed a toast "Here's to us!" they did the toast.

"So why are we all getting together like this?" asked Fu.

"Well everybody has just been so busy with getting ready for the war I thought we could use some stress relief."

"Oh yeah I get you, all of us need to unwind. There aren't any ordinary missions anymore, everything is focused on preparing for the war."

"Frankly, I just appreciate you inviting me seeing how I've only been in this village for about 2 months or so. But seriously though, how exactly do all of you know each other?"

"Well I know them because of Tatsu." Ayame told her "After all, he's like a little brother to me and the guys are all like brothers to him. I know Izumi because she had a thing for Itachi, and we were teammates with Kazuma and Shisui when the three of us were chunin. But as for how all of the others know each other, well they'll have to tell you that."

Tenten thought about this "Actually that's a good point, why do we always end up hanging out with each other anyway?"

"My best guess is because you all took the chunin exams together."

"Oh yeah of course, that must be it. We went on a lot of missions together too huh."

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"To be honest, I still don't get this whole thing." Kiba commented "About the Allied Shinobi Force I mean."

"It's like putting all kinds of meat together on a single plate." Choji told him "After all there's nothing wrong with a little variety once in awhile."

"But we're not talking about food here Choji, the Hidden Leaf just doesn't have any close ties to any other villages aside from the Hidden Sand and Hidden Waterfall."

"I've heard there have been issues with the Hidden Cloud." Shino noted.

"I'm sure it's not just us." Shikamaru commented "With all of the history between the villages, there's bound to be issues between and inside all of them."

Neji nodded "I agree, every village has one kind of grudge or another against all of the other villages."

"But the Five Kage have all agreed to this alliance." Sasuke pointed out "Not to mention the Land of Iron and the Hidden Waterfall. That just shows you how bad the situation has to be."

"Well if war breaks out then we're just gonna have to fight our hardest without knowing exactly who's fighting on either side." Kiba commented.

"You've never been afraid of strangers Kiba." Shino pointed out.

"Oh shut up, it's just a big pain to have to remember all of their scents."

Choji grinned "When all of us are together like this, it brings back so many memories of that one mission."

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"But then the chunin exam was cancelled." explained Kin "And it was only halfway done."

"You mean when the Hidden Leaf was attacked?" asked Fu.

"So much has happened but we haven't lost anyone and we can still get together like this so easily."

"That must mean your generation is exceptional."

"Yeah that's true, after all that girl Sakura is the only one who's really gone."

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Shikamaru's mood darkened "Are you talking about that one time we went on the mission to get Sasuke back?"

"But many of you nearly lost your lives." Shino pointed out "The reason is because you didn't take me along."

"Are you seriously still upset about that?" Kiba grumbled

"Well it certainly was a tough battle." Choji admitted "And yet all of us made it through okay somehow."

"And it benefited us in a lot of ways." Sasuke looked at his Raijin katana "After all, it's how I got that thing."

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"I'm glad." Hinata murmured "I'm glad that I took the chunin exams."

"You may have lost to Neji, but you still gave it your all." Tenten pointed out "That's what really counts."

"It's because he cheered me on back then, it's because Naruto had supported me that I was able to do my best."

"Naruto was unpredictable even way back then." Ayame let out a sigh "But he grew so strong through hard work and perseverance alone, and look at him now, he's become the village hero."

"But don't forget that Lee played a huge part in that battle too." Tenten pointed out.

"Both of them are prime examples, with hard work and determination anything is possible "And this time it's going to be our turn to protect Naruto."

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"It kind of feels like some faces are missing." Kiba commented "After all, it's a lot more lively with Naruto, Tatsu and Lee around."'

Sasuke nodded "I know what you mean, they make our little group feel a lot more complete. After all, they make up the majority of Team Dragon and they're the strongest ninja the Hidden Leaf has right now."

"You're just as strong as them Sasuke." Asuma pointed out.

"But not nearly strong enough. Still though, I wonder what they're doing out there right now."

"I doubt it's even remotely related to this, at least not while they're at sea."

"That's true." then he turned serious "It's hard to believe when you think about it, that this might be the last time we can get together like this before the war starts."

"The way I see it you guys are lucky." Asuma downed some meat "You haven't lost any of your class yet."

"We lost Sakura."

"She made her own choice to stray from the Will of Fire. Besides, you guys have more than made up for that loss. Besides, if you're worried about the war then just train as hard as you can for as long as you can."

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Kakashi stood leaning against a tree in the training grounds, and looked to see Asuma coming up to him "You seem pretty serious so early in the morning, what's up?"

Asuma promptly took out his trench knives "You know what's up. We've already lost Hayate, I don't want us to lose any more of our class. We've gotta work together on this Kakashi, if we don't combine our strength then we don't have a chance of winning this war."

"...You sound pretty fired up." Kakashi lifted up his headband, revealing his Sharingan "Alright, so you wanna get serious right from the start don't you?"

"No fooling around." Asuma gained brown markings around his eyes and white markings down his cheeks, his chakra blades turning from blue to white "Let's go." and he charged in.

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About 2 days went by, and the crew.

"Thanks for the food!" Naruto walked out of a local ramen shop with Yahiko "Man that sure filled me up, not that it compares to Ichiraku."

"To be fair, the standards are pretty high." Yahiko pointed out "I mean, what really could-" he was cut off by the sound of an explosion.

"What's going on?"

"You've got me."

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Two women by the names of Tokiwa and Shizuka were being chased by a greedy puppet master by the name of Kokuyo.

Tokiwa scowled "Great it's you again, why don't you just give up already?"

Kokuyo smirked "Look my business isn't with you, you're just the chaperone. The one I want to fight is the princess next to you."

"Never, I will not allow such a thing. Lady Shizuka, you don't need to dirty your hands with the likes of him."

"This is my destiny, please just stand back." Shizuka stepped forward.

Kokuyo smirked "How is it that you always look more beautiful every time I see you? Now hurry, I want you to be my wife." he prepared to unleash a rocket from his puppet.

Shizuka promptly removed her cloak and leapt into the air " **Nadeshiko Style: Roaring Hurricane Kick!"** she slammed her foot down after enhancing it with wind style, destroying the puppet and sending Kokuyo flying.

"Incredible Lady Shizuka, but now please go wait at the inn." Tokiwa handed her cloak back to her "I will check on the travel arrangements we've made for the ship."

"Thank you." and she walked off.

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Naruto let out a whistle "Damn, she's really something."

Yahiko nodded "I know what you mean, but it's not like it's got anything to do with us. We should go, Yamato and the others will be waiting."

"Sir, please wait."

Yahiko looked back to see Tokiwa rushing up to him "Something I can help you with?"

"From those headbands you wear I can see that you're both Leaf shinobi, am I correct?"

"That's right, why?"

"May I ask you about the Legendary Sannin, Lord Jiraiya? Do you know anyone who was his student?"

"...Naruto, why don't you go back to the ship? I'll deal with things here and catch up with you once I've wrapped things up."

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Yahiko sat down with Tokiwa in a teahouse "Alright, what is it you're looking for exactly?"

Tokiwa sighed "What a surprise it is to find the person we're seeking right here, we were actually about to board a ship to sail to the Hidden Leaf to look for you."

"It was quite the surprise to me too, hearing someone say Jiraiya-sensei's name out of the blue like that. How did you know about me though?"

"You mean Lord Jiraiya didn't tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

"Then I will tell you, your grandfather had a connection with my village that began many years ago. He had come to spy in our village and was spotted, but he managed to escape using the summoning jutsu."

"...That does sound like Jiraiya-sensei."

"Anyway, the former leader of our village tracked him down and made a request. To duel with her and marry her if he won."

"...Okay, where exactly is this story going?"

"Nadeshiko Village is matrilineal, it is made up of only women."

"I can imagine that Jiraiya-sensei would've seen the village as some sort of heaven on earth."

"Those who wish to be leader leave the village to find strong men and challenge them, and then if those men are triumphant then they are brought back to be our husbands. It's the law of our village. Their duel was a clash of well honed ninjutsu skills, but in the end the match was never actually decided. So they made a promise, the duel would be postponed and if their rematch would never come to be then their students were to seek each other out and finish the fight in their place."

"So you're saying that-"

"Yes, you're to duel with Lady Shizuka with the reward being her hand in marriage."

"...M-Marriage? Hold on a second, this whole entire thing is way too sudden for me."

"It's not sudden at all, it had been decided years ago."

"But this is the first time I'm hearing about it!"

"Sorry but that's your problem, besides a promise is a promise. We'll be in big trouble if you refuse."

"Yeah but _I'll_ be in even bigger trouble if I agree! Anyway, I say we just forget we ever had this conversation! Any objections? No? Swell, bye!" and he ran off.

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Yahiko later told the others about what happened.

Tatsu burst out laughing when he heard it "That chick asked her to marry you right off the bat like that? Looks like we've got a real ladies man here!"

Yahiko felt the vein in his forehead throbbing "I'm telling you it's not like that, this is all because of some crazy promise Jiraiya-sensei made and now I'm the one who has to pay for it!"

Yamato let out a sigh "You know, in case you've forgotten guys we happen to be on a very important secret mission. We can't get involved in any foolish distraction."

"If that's the case then we should probably move up our departure." Kazuma suggested.

Shisui nodded "Good idea, lucky for us all of our supplies have already been restocked so let's hit the hay early and set sail first thing in the morning."

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Darkness hit, and soon everyone was fast asleep.

Yahiko got up in the middle of the night ' _I've gotta pee. Dammit, I never should've drank so much before.'_ then he looked down and saw Tokiwa standing outside ' _Son of a-._ Time out okay, just give me 5 minutes."

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"Yahiko let out a sigh "Please stop following me and just leave me alone, I'm begging you."

"You won't be able to escape me, you are a prime candidate for a husband." Tokiwa told him.

"Look I already said no, what more do you want out of me anyway? I know that it's your village tradition and all but all it is to me is weird, I'm not taking part in any duel."

"But-!"

"Look, if you really want a fight that badly then go pick on someone else already."

"Please don't say such things!" Tokiwa slammed her fist against a boulder "Lady Shizuka doesn't enjoy this either, I can assure you of that much. She's always been kind hearted and compassionate. However, that all changed when he came along."

"He?"

"His name was Sagiri, he was a merchant who had been allowed into the village. Lady Shizuka ended up falling in love with him, even though the village law specifically prohibited them being together. However, he died soon after. No one knows how for sure, but some say it was a plot concocted by a few who were concerned about the future of the village. He was attacked and taken down easily to prove that he was unfit for the Nadeshiko."

"That's horrible, I just can't think of any other words for it."

"And from that day on Lady Shizuka locked away her heart, she's stopped herself from feeling love so she will never again lose someone she cares for. She's only thought of fulfilling her duty of seeking out and challenging the strong, it's become as though she's punishing herself for what happened."

"...And that's why you want me to fight her so badly?"

"You're the student of the formidable Master Jiraiya who fought our previous leader to a draw, you may be able to put an end to Lady Shizuka's struggles. I'm fully aware of how selfish of a request this is but please, will you agree to fight Lady Shizuka?"

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Morning came, and the group had set out.

Yahiko watched from the island as the ship set sail ' _I swapped with a Shadow Clone when no one was looking, I just hope they don't notice too soon._ Alright, that should buy us some time."

Tokiwa bowed to him "Yahiko, I am deeply grateful that you agreed to fight in this duel."

"I'm sorry to disappoint you but I didn't come here to fight, I came here to talk and nothing more."

"What?"

Yahiko looked back at Shizuka "Look I heard about what happened to you and I'm really truly sorry, but this whole thing is just completely insane."

Shizuka stood and removed her hood "You may not be here to fight but I am, now let's find out how strong you really are."

"...I'm not going to find any way to get out of this am I?"

"This area will do fine." Tokiwa formed a hand seal " **Earth Style: Iron Prison!"** she used an earth style jutsu to create an arena for the duel.

' _Asked and answered._ I'm not going to do this."

"Don't try to fight destiny." Shizuka told him "Please, allow me to begin." she then charged forward " **Nadeshiko Style: Roaring Gale Chop!"** she infused her hand with wind chakra and thrusted it forward, creating fissures in the ground.

Yahiko leapt out of the way.

" **Nadeshiko Style: Ariel Dance!"** she fired a barrage of kunai forward.

Yahiko continuously dodged them, but just barely ' _Damn she's got a lot of those things.'_ he formed a hand seal " **Earth Style: Mud Wall!"** he formed a wall of rock to protect himself.

"Fine then. **Spinning Waltz!"** Shizuka spun like a small twister, continuously firing off a barrage of kunai, eventually cutting through the earth wall.

' _There's just no end to them!'_ Yahiko formed a hand seal " **Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** he summoned 10 clones and they all charged.

" **Gale Fan!"** Shizuka breathed out a stream of wind from her mouth, dissipating the clones, then knocked the one behind her to the ground and held a kunai to his throat "Looks like it's all over."

"Yeah it looks that way doesn't it?"

Shizuka's eye shot wide and she looked back to see Yahiko holding his sword pointed at the back of her neck ' _But how-?'_

"And now it's over." Yahiko dissipated the Shadow Clone in front of her.

"A diversion in the second stage. Nobody has ever gotten behind me. Fine then, just go ahead and deliver the final blow."

"Forget it, I told you before that I didn't come here to fight. I'm sorry, but I'm just not interested in this duel."

"Then I'll take the woman for myself!" a gigantic puppet burst from the ground, catching Shizuka in its hand, revealing Kokuyo on the edge of the arena "Now I've got you."

"This trick is less than nothing, and it's nothing but cowardly!" Shizuka slammed her foot down on the puppet, destroying it. Then a red seal suddenly appeared on her stomach, causing her to cry out in pain as chakra strings appeared connected to her arms and legs.

"This is a little something I like to call the Hundred Puppet Bind, it's a jutsu that drives bolts or anchor points into my target each time one of my hundred puppets is beaten, and now you've become my puppet."

Tokiwa froze "So that means… the puppets from before were all for this? You coward!"

"Yes I've done it, and now Shizuka and Nadeshiko Village are all mine!"

"Let her go!" orange pigments appeared around Yahiko's eyes "We were still in the middle of talking, let her go now or I'll make you let her go."

"Just shut up, it's none of your business kid so get lost! I'm gonna take her away from here as a-"

Yahiko suddenly blitzed in front of him and fired a fist near his face, the force somehow carrying and snapping the chakra threads, cutting Shizuka free. Then he bit down on his thumb and formed a hand seal " **Summoning Jutsu!"** he slammed his hand into the ground.

Then Gamahiro appeared " **What's going on- Wait, aren't you that third kid that Jiraiya trained from the Hidden Rain?"**

"That would be me, it's good to see you again Gamahiro. Long story short, can you just kick that guy and send him flying?"

" **...Okay."** so Gamahiro sent Kokuyo flying with a single kick, sending him through the wall and causing the battle arena to disappear " **That's the end of that. Later."** and he left.

Yahiko gently set Shizuka down in the center of the crater "Are you alright?"

Shizuka just looked away "Why would you save me?"

"Okay, I've had just about enough of this. This whole thing is completely ridiculous."

"No not that, you had a chance to defeat me before so why didn't you?"

"Would you have been satisfied if I did?"

Her eyes widened.

"Because it's destiny? You locked away your heart, your emotions, and even your own sense of judgement just so you could go and look for a husband, the way I see that's just completely insane. I mean sure I don't know much about stuff like marriage, especially since I've been dead for about 20 years. But tell me, aren't you supposed to be in love with someone first and be attracted to who they are deep inside?"

"Yes, but that's…"

"There's a girl I love, her name is Konan. My heart belongs to her, it always has. Even when we were young, she was always at the front of my mind. And when she smiles, it's like she isn't even human. To me Konan is an angel, hell to me she's even a goddess. I would gladly give my life for her, and I actually did once. I honestly don't know if my feelings are one sided or not, but we've got one thing in common. A mutual desire for peace in the world. I remember one incident in particular. Another member of my Akatsuki asked her out but she refused, she said that she wouldn't have any time for any of that until she made our dream come true. Of course I'd never ever try to force her to love me, if I did then I would be no different than that scumbag that tried to make you his puppet. So anyway I made up my mind a long time ago to have two goals, to bring about the ambitions of the Akatsuki and to win Konan's heart."

Shizuka looked away "I see, but my destiny is different-"

"It's not destiny, it's nothing but some stupid rule your village made up and rules were meant to be broken."

"But-But how?"

"You're smart and you're strong, why don't you just use your abilities to put an end to it."

Her eyes widened, and she fell silent.

"I'm not sure that I explained it that well, but that's just about everything I wanted to talk to you about."

"HEY!" then Naruto suddenly dropped down out of nowhere.

"...What the hell are you doing?"

"That's what I should be asking you! Captain Yamato has been stuck in that creepy death face ever since we found out you swapped with a Shadow Clone!"

"It can't be that bad."

"It's been 3 hours!"

"...Yeah that's bad."

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Soon enough, they were ready to depart. Again.

"We're just about to set sail." Shisui called.

"I'll be up in a second." then Yahiko looked back to Shizuka "Well you take of yourself."

"Tell me Yahiko." her voice was soft "When your mission is over, when you go back home, are you going to tell that person that you love her?"

"...We'll see, depending on how this mission turns out. But for now I'll just keep watching over her and trying to protect her."

"And you're satisfied with that?"

"Yeah, I am. Of course nothing would make me happier than if she ended up returning my feelings someday, but either way I'll be content. I just want Konan to be happy. To me, that's all that matters." then he leapt onto the boat, and they set sail.

Shizuka waited for a good long while ' _That's right, Lady Shizuko said that Lord Jiraiya told her that he had given his heart to another woman but it was pretty one sided on his part. But she had suffered so much heartbreak that she'd closed off her heart, and he knew that she would be the only one ever able to truly hold his heart so he decided to fill her presence with love just to make her happy, and he didn't care about getting anything in return.'_

Then Tokiwa stepped up behind her "Lady Shizuka."

"Come on Tokiwa, let's go. I will become stronger and then one day, when the time is right, I will…" then she walked away, with Tokiwa following right behind her.

 **A/N:**

 **Ino having water and lightning natures was inspired by the Legend of the Namikaze, a fic written by Mr Apathy. It's really good, you shook check it out. It's on .**

 **Thunder Panther was one of the jutsu Tatsu used against Kimimaro in their battle during the retrieval mission, and yes it is based off of Kakashi's Lightning Beast Running Jutsu.**

 **I named the other Uchihas Byakuya, Rukia and names of other characters from Bleach because I am absolutely terrible at coming up with names.**

 **I figured that I should give Asuma some character development, and it would be awesome to give him Sage Mode. After all, Kakashi has a Sharingan and Guy has the Eight Gates, so why not give him an awesome power up too?**

 **I added Yahiko in during that whole thing at Nadeshiko Village to give him some character development, as well as to give some insight into his feelings for Konan in regards to their goals for peace.**

 **To reader R: I thought it would be good to have Naruto learn kenjutsu and enhance it with Sage Mode because, why not? No, Toneri will not be appearing during the war, but I have an idea to make sure that works out with the Last. Oh, and Kakashi will not become the Sixth Hokage. Oh, and expect the following people to take part in the battle against Kaguya: Tatsu, Naruto, Sasuke, Lee, Kakashi, Itachi (Will be revived later on), Shisui, Kauma, Ino. I may or may not continue on with a Boruto fanfic, depending on how good the anime turns out to be once things really get going.**

 **Just to be clear, the pairings are as follows:**

 **Naruto x Hinata**

 **Sasuke x Kin**

 **Tatsu x Ino**

 **Lee x Fu**

 **Itachi x Izumi**

 **Kazuma x Ayame**

 **Shikamaru x Temari**

 **Choji x Karui**

 **Neji x Tenten**

 **Yahiko x Konan**

 **Shisui x Samui because, why not?**

 **Now then, I've run into a serious problem with this fic. I'm planning on having Neji survive, but the problem is that I need someone else to die in his place and I can't decide who. If anyone could provide suggestions, I'd really appreciate it.**


	25. Turtle Island, Kisame Hoshigaki

A misty day at sea.

Tatsu looked out, but couldn't see anything at all in front of them ' _It's been about 2 months since we set sail towards the Land of Lightning, and we should be docking at this secret training location any day now. The Raikage wouldn't even disclose the location to me or to Lady Tsunade, but he did say that it was the ideal place to put Naruto if we want him to lay low. Knowing what Naruto is like, there's no way he'll do what he's supposed to and stay hidden when the war starts. Hell, chances are that once he learns that the war has started he's gonna charge right onto the battlefield like an angry rhino. Lady Tsunade even told Naruto that we're on a highly classified S-rank mission, we're all supposed to follow along with the story and make sure.'_ he looked to his right.

Naruto was searching for the octopus mentioned in the prophecy "Octopus, octopus, octopus, where are you?"

' _Exhibit A._ What the hell are you doing?"

"I'm looking for that octopus, it's supposed to give me guidance. Don't you remember? Giant Gramps Sage foretold it, I'm supposed to meet this octopus and train him and this weird slug guy at some resort. I mean he's right about this place being some kind of island paradise, so he must be right about meeting some guys that are gonna help me."

"Well my best guess right now is that the slug is supposed to be Utakata, the jinchuriki of the Six Tails. As for the octopus, I have absolutely no idea. _On the bright side, it looks like Naruto still hasn't caught on yet.'_

Then the captain came out "Alright, please get ready to disembark now."

"Will do, thanks for the heads up."

"Hey Tatsu look!" Naruto pointed ahead "The island is coming into view, paradise here we come!"

"...Naruto, I really think you should take another look."

"Why?" Naruto looked and realized it was a hideous war zone "Oh. So you're telling me that this is a supposed to be a paradise?"

"It's like the Hidden Cloud's version of the Forest of Death from the Hidden Leaf." the captain told him "Though perhaps it comes across as a whole lot flashier."

"...No resort?"

"Don't worry, it's safe here. Just remember, all you have to do is make sure you don't provoke them and the creatures here will leave you alone no problem. Well, except for that certain creature."

"And which one would that be exactly?" asked Tatsu "And please tell me it has the ability to make Naruto stop whining about this not being the tropical paradise he's been fantasizing about this entire trip?"

"It lives along the shore."

"You mean like the thing rising up behind the ship?" Tatsu pointed to where tentacles were rising up behind the ship.

Naruto's mood did an instant 180 "Yeah, octopus tentacles! Alright octopus, I made it here so come on and guide me!"

"That's not an octopus you idiot, that's a giant squid!"

"Let's see here…" Naruto started counting "1, 2, 3, 4-"

"Don't waste your time counting the tentacles you moron, you can tell just by looking at its head!"

"...I don't know about that Tatsu, I think we should make sure. A squid has 10 legs and an octopus has 8, if this is the octopus that will guide me than I've gotta know." then he suddenly got swept away by the tentacles.

"Naruto!" Tatsu quickly entered Sage Mode and leapt up to punch the squid.

That is, before an octopus "Squid go deviate, the rest I abbreviate!"

"Hey big guy, if you want an abbreviation then here it is! Boot to the head!" Tatsu slammed his foot into the octopus' head, powered by Sage Mode.

"5, 6, 7, 8. Yep, it's an octopus!" Naruto leapt back down onto the ship "Tatsu this is the octopus- Will you stop kicking him?! Enough boots to the head!"

"Fine." Tatsu leapt back down "My foot was starting to crap up anyway, what the hell is that thing made of?"

The captain breathed a sigh of relief "He's Lord Killer B."

"Wait, _this_ is supposed to be Killer B?"

The octopus disappeared, revealing Killer B, with Samehada strapped to his back "All y'all are late, ya hear? Fools, ya fools."

"Hey Octopops, thanks ya know!" Naruto called.

"Ya know, huh?" Killer B checked in his notebook "I don't wanna be brash, but when we crash it's gonna be a full on smash. If I dare say, it'll be a full on no go. Whee! I'm a brad hatin' eyeball!"

"...Who the hell is this shades wearing meathead with all of the weird rhymes? _This geezer is supposed to me my octopus mentor?'_

"They're not weird rhymes." the captain told him "That's his own unique combination of enka and rap, it's Enka Rap."

"That doesn't make any sense in the slightest."'

"Tell me about it." Tatsu muttered "How the hell do you think I feel?"

"I understand it."

Tatsu looked back to see Kazuma come up, with Shisui and Yahiko right behind him "You really understand this stuff?"

"Clear as day."

"Kazuma, my main man, the man with the plan!" Killer B held out a fist "You looking tight fool, ya fool!"

"Good to see you too B." Kazuma met him with a fist bump "I'm guessing you never bought the story that I was dead."

"Not for a minute fool."

"I should've expected as much from you."

"Hold on a minute." Tatsu cut in "Kazuma, you know this guy?"

"I told you didn't I? I mastered my Tenseigan here, and Killer B was the one who helped me to do that?"

"Is that so?"

"Glad you could all make it, we've been waiting for you!" a Hidden Cloud shinobi called from atop one of the spikes "I am supervisor Motoi, welcome! Follow me, I'll show all of you to your rooms!"

That was when Ino came up, supporting a seasick Lee "Alright, just a little bit further."

Lee let out a groan "Have we finally arrived?"

"Yeah we just landed a few minutes ago, so try to hold out until you get to shore."

"How's he doing?" asked Tatsu "Has he gotten any better?"

"Don't get your hopes up, he never did get his sea legs."

"Well to be fair we were at sea for a good long while, I myself was beginning to feel kind of queasy."

"It was so long…" Lee muttered "And it was so painful…"

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Soon enough, they were on their way through the dark forest of the island.

Naruto was less than impressed "This is not exactly what I call paradise."

"This isn't a vacation Naruto, it's a mission." Tatsu pointed out "An S-rank mission at that. Besides, when you think about it this is the perfect place for training." then he looked up and saw an angry giant gorilla appearing before them "Exhibit A is standing right in front of us."

"Chill out people's, I've got this." Killer B held out a hand to the gorilla "Stand down there King, these guys are with me."

King blinked, then bowed.

"There we go."

"...How the hell did he do that?" asked Tatsu.

"Master B stands atop the hierarchy of beasts on the island." Motoi told them "He's successfully tamed every single one of them, so long as he remains here this place will not offer any of you any danger. Also, prominent Hidden Cloud shinobi maintain a barrier around the exterior of the island. We'll know immediately if anything suspicious approaches."

' _So that's why this place was selected to hold Naruto and the others._ So what's the deal with the big guy up there?"

"He is the hero among heroes of the Hidden Cloud, he is someone who not only tamed these beasts but he also has the power of the Eight Tails perfectly under his control. He's the jinchuuriki of the Eight Tails."

"I figured that, I could sense the power of the Eight Tails inside him. Hey that reminds me, aren't there forces from the Hidden Mist coming here too? I mean they still have Utakata with them don't they?"

"Utakata is here, as well as his disciple per his insistence, but there aren't any other forces from the Hidden Mist here. Lady Mizukage had insisted that her forces be mainly focused on preparing for the upcoming war."

"I see. So going back to Killer B."

"This island also happens to be where Lord Killer B trained to control the power of the Eight Tails, as well as where your own brother tamed his Tenseigan and gained complete control over all of its power.

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Soon enough, Motoi had led them to a house in the middle of the forest, looking exactly like the Eight Tails "You Hidden Leaf ninja can use this entire floor, although it appears that two of you will have to share. The dining hall is downstairs, you can eat whenever you desire. If you'll excuse me I have some urgent business I must attend to, just feel free to come find me if you need me." and he went on his way.

"Alright, everyone pick any rooms you like I guess." Shisui told them "Let's adjourn until the meeting tomorrow at 7."

"Fine by me, I've got stuff I've gotta do anyway." then Tatsu promptly walked off.

"So where do you think he's going?" asked Naruto.

Kazuma sighed "I can imagine he's going to ask Killer B how he can learn to control his Tenseigan."

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Tatsu made his way down another hall ' _Kazuma trained here to master his Tenseigan, and he was already a genius. He said that this Killer B guy trained with him and helped him perfect his control over it and Kazuma himself is still being vague, if I'm gonna learn how to use my Tenseigan then Killer B has to be the guy to go to.'_ he knocked on the door.

Then Killer B opened it "It's that brat with the Dragon Blade that looks like a mini version of Kazuma, so what's up? Did you want my autograph or something?"

"Nothing of the sort, I need your help with something."

"Like what?"

"From what I heard you helped Kazuma to learn to control the power of his Tenseigan, right?"

"What's it to you?"

"Kazuma is my older brother, I'm just like him but the problem is that I don't know how to control the power of my eyes. Please, just tell me how he did it so I can master its power as well."

' _He's got the same fire in his eyes as his brother, that's for sure._ I came because my brother the Raikage ordered me to take a vacation, I'm not here to play a bunch of games of 20 questions. You hear me, fool ya fool? Why would I wanna give up my free time for some brat I've never met?"

"Because I'm desperate!" Tatsu bowed his head "Please, I need to master his power." his body began shaking, his tone becoming increasingly desperate "I'm not strong enough as I am now, if I don't master this power then all of the people I know and love are going to die out there! My friends, my family, everyone! Please, I'm begging you!"

"...You're not big on formalities and the like are you?"

"Is it that obvious?"

"Look, like I said I'm not giving up my free time. But I like your brother and I admire your guts kid, you get it just like the rest of us. So if you really wanna train, go find the number Six and he'll show you where to go." and he shut the door.

"...Number Six? What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"My best guess is he was talking about me."

Tatsu looked back and saw a figure in a blue kimono standing behind him "No way… is that you Utakata?"

Sure enough, Utakata stood behind him, brown markings around his cheeks and eyes "It's been a long time Tatsu."

"So if this guy sent me to you then that means…"

"Yep, I've earned the full cooperation of the Six Tails. Turns out his name is Saiken."

"Huh."

"Yeah I know right? Anyway come on and follow me, I'll take you to Killer B's old training grounds where both him and I unlocked the full power of our Tailed Beasts." he started walking away.

"Alright." Tatsu followed him.

"So by the way, how's that master of yours doing that you told me so much about? Did he come with you?"

Tatsu suddenly stopped, clenching his fists until they nearly bled.

Utakata noticed this "What's the matter?"

"My master… Hayate-sensei… he was killed."

Utakata's eyes widened slightly "I see."

"It was Hidan and Kakuzu of the Akatsuki."

Utakata froze ' _Those two…'_

"That's why I'm so desperate to get stronger before the war. I've already lost my master, I can't afford to lose anyone else."

"...I see. Come on, let's go. It's not that far from here." and Utakata led him onwards without another word.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Soon enough, Utakata led him to a waterfall in the middle of the forest "Alright then, here we are."

Tatsu blinked "Wait a minute, so this is it?"

"Yep, this place is called the Waterfall of Truth."

"So this is where you and Killer B learned to control the power of your Tailed Beasts and where my brother learned to control his Tenseigan?"

"For you yes, but for jinchuuriki this is just the first step."

"Oh. Hey by the way, where's Hotaru?"

"Right here!"

Tatsu looked back and saw Hotaru rushing towards him "Oh hey."

"Tatsu, it's been too long!" Hotaru bowed "It's great to see you again."

"You too. Sorry, but I don't have time for any kind of small talk right now. I came here so I could train, end of story."

"Right." Utakata stepped out onto the lake sitting in front of the waterfall and pointed to a small island in the center "Sit down on this thing and close your eyes Tatsu, once you do you'll see your true self."

"What do you mean I'll see my true self?"

"It's not something I can explain, you won't understand until you do it."

"...Alright, I guess." Tatsu sat down on the island and began meditating.

"Now we wait."

"Do you think he'll be able to do it?" asked Hotaru.

"I don't _think_ he'll be able to do it, I _know_ he'll be able to do it."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Hey."

Tatsu opened his eyes and found himself facing another version of himself, this one having white pupils and black sclera "What the hell? _This guy looks exactly like me. Is he some kind of Shadow Clone? No, I'd know if I'd made one.'_

"Come on, that should be obvious to you if you're as sharp as you claim to be. I'm the real you, the realistic side of you that truly understands how cold and cruel the shinobi world is that exists deep inside of your heart. You see, I am you. The feelings at your core and the shape of your truth, the fact is that I'm the true you."

"Stop making stuff up, I've never seen you or heard of you once in my entire life so quit making stuff up."

"...So this is the place they call the Waterfall of Truth? I never thought I'd be able to completely emerge like this, and damn I like it. Anyway, I'm the truth that you're supposed to face. I'm the real you, your true self inside."

"The real me? But…"

"Yeah that's right, I'm all of the hatred and insecurities that I hold inside of you. Take it like Yin and Yang for example, you're the Yang while I'm the Yin."

' _So this is the inner darkness that prevents me from mastering the Tenseigan, just like Kazuma told me before.'_

"Yeah you've got that right. Just face the reality, I'm the real one here and I'm not gonna let some fake try and boot me out of my own head."

"So that's how it is then is it?"

Dark, as the fake will now be called, charged forward and aimed a fist.

Tatsu stopped the fist with his own, then fired off his own fist.

Dark stopped that fist with his own.

"Sorry to disappoint you, but you're the fake one here and I'm here to prove it."

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Ino was looking after a seasick Lee ' _He really is out of it isn't he?'_ then she looked out the window ' _Tatsu went straight after Killer B, so he really must be desperate to master his eyes before the war starts. I've never seen him like this though…'_

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Tatsu wasn't getting anywhere with conquering Dark "Dammit! _Our strength levels are exactly the same! At this rate I'll never get through it.'_

Dark smirked "Just accept it, there's no way you'll ever be able to defeat me."

"Fine, then I'll use quantity over quality! **Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** Tatsu summoned 10 Shadow Clones.

" **Shadow Clone Jutsu."** Dark summoned 10 Shadow Clones.

' _Son of a bitch this is completely ridiculous, we even know the same jutsu?'_

"So you finally figured it out? Took you long enough, and I thought you were supposed to be the sharp one."

"...Take him down!" Tatsu sent his clones forward.

"Take him down!" Dark sent his clones forward, cancelling out Tatsu's clones.

" **Rasengan!"** Tatsu charged forward with a Rasengan in his hand.

" **Rasengan!"** Dark sent Tatsu forward with a Rasengan in his hand, the clash sending a shockwave throughout the area.

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Tatsu suddenly opened his eyes and began gasping ' _Dammit, that guy forced me out of my own mind.'_

"How did it go?" asked Utakata.

"This guy that looks exactly like me showed up, I think he might have been the dark half buried deep inside of me? He's exactly like me in every way. We've got the same level of strength, the same jutsu, the same fighting style, the same tricks, everything is completely identical between the two of us. We'll end up fighting forever if I go back in there again."

"Well you have to defeat him, if you don't then you'll never be able to handle the power of your eyes."

"So how the hell am I supposed to beat this guy?"

"That's something I can't tell you even if I wanted to, but I do know that if you want to conquer your darkness then you need to come to terms with your greatest doubts and accept them."

"Then what the hell are my greatest doubts supposed to be?"

"...Let's get back to that a little later. Tell me something Tatsu, why are you so desperate to master the power your eyes hold within?"

"Why do you think? I need to get stronger, if I don't then I'll never be able to protect the people that I-" paused "Oh."

"Your inner darkness knows your greatest weakness, he knows that you come off as nonchalant and confident in your abilities and those of your friends and allies, but deep down you constantly fear that you're not powerful enough to protect them."

"...I think that may have become an issue when my brother was first killed, I know that he isn't really dead but the memories of the pain I felt still remain. I kept telling myself that if I had been stronger than maybe I could've saved him, so I started training with Hayate-sensei and the others as hard as I could for 4 whole years, so I could protect the people I cared about and so I would never have to fail any of them ever again. But then…" he gripped his fists "But then the threat of the Akatsuki began to rise, and Hidan and Kakuzu started searching for jinchuuriki all around the Land of Fire, and because of that I lost Hayate-sensei…"

"I can't say I know any of the pain or suffering other jinchuuriki have, I never really did get ostracized like other jinchuuriki were. The people hated and feared Yagura a lot more than they did me, whether or not it was because of him being a jinchuuriki or because of his horrible bloody reign, in my eyes it didn't really matter."

"I see."

" _Well isn't that convenient for him?"_

Tatsu looked back and saw a faint silhouette of Dark behind him, but it faded away ' _He's still there, still haunting me.'_ he started walking away.

"Where are you going?"

"Sorry Utakata, I just need to be alone and think to myself for a little while."

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An isolated area near the shore of the island.

That's where Tatsu found himself after wandering for what seemed like hours, and he finally sat down so he could think ' _Maybe Utakata is right, maybe it's my deep seated insecurities about protecting my loved ones that are preventing me. Is that what the real me was trying to tell me during that fight? That I'm not strong enough to protect them? I never really gave it very much thought, but I guess that somewhere deep inside me heart it's true. Even after all of the training I've gone through, I still have doubts about being able to protect them.'_ then he heard a loud crash and looked up to see the giant squid attempting to flatten him with a tentacle ' _Son of a bitch, not this thing again!'_ he dodged a swipe of one tentacle ' _I guess I'm gonna have to use Sage Mode to calm this thing down.'_ he formed a hand seal " **Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** he then summoned 20 clones "Cover me."

"Right!" the clones charged in, only for all of them to be flattened by the squid within a matter of moments.

' _Well the clones didn't last long. No matter, lucky for me I only need at least 30 seconds to enter Sage Mode.'_ the usual blue markings appeared around his eyes ' _Alright then, time to cross fighting a giant squid off of my bucket list!'_ he then then punched the squid directly between the eyes with his right fist, then slammed a Rasengan down onto its head with his left, causing the squid to retreat back into the sea. Then Tatsu landed back on the spikes ' _You know, maybe the level I'm at isn't so bad after all.'_

"So this is where you were."

Tatsu looked back and saw Ino standing behind him "Ino."

"Utakata told me that you ran off so I came looking for you, and now I find you punching out a giant squid. So yeah, it looks to me like you're doing alright."

"...I'm scared Ino, I'm really truly scared."

Ino sat down beside him.

"I know I usually seem calm cool and collected, but this time around I'm really and truly terrified. I don't know if I can do this."

"I've never seen you like this. What happened to the Tatsu Kamikaze that would charge in like an angry rhino to protect his friends?"

"That's different Ino, this is _war_ we're talking about. One wrong move and you and everyone else will die."

"...Tell me something, what was the first thing you did when you saw this dark half of yours?"

"Well he kept saying that he was the hatred inside of me, that he was the true me."

"And how did you respond to that?"

"By trying to beat him to a pulp."

"Why?"

"Because I… I… I don't know."

"...In times of peace, you can never forget the possibility of war. In times of war, you can never forget compassion."

"What?"

"That was a quote by the First Hokage, and this too. _The hatred in you, it's a part of who you are. Everyone has some in their hearts._ You know that don't you? Don't forget, what really draws people to you and makes them believe in you, is your conviction. Remember, violence isn't always the answer, even for a shinobi."

"...So you're saying that I'm not supposed to defeat this dark half, but rather I'm supposed to pacify him?"

"Well that's up to you."

"...You know what,, I think I'm gonna give it a shot. But first…" he instantly caught Ino in a tight hug, then gently yet passionately kissed her on the lips "Thank you Ino, you really are my greatest inspiration. Well I should really head back before the others get to worried, do you wanna come?"

"Sure." she started following him back, and smiled ' _This is the man I fell in love with, the one who'd go to the ends of the earth for his loved ones.'_

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"Sorry about that."

Utakata looked up and saw Tatsu emerging from the forest, with Ino at his side "So are you good now?"

"Yeah I think so, and now I know what I've gotta do." then he promptly sat down on the island and began meditating.

"So what exactly did you do?"

Ino shot him a bright smile "I just kissed him."

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Tatsu opened his eyes ' _Here we go, time for round 2.'_

Then Dark emerged from the waterfall "So you're back for more are you? I guess you didn't learn your lesson. Try all you want, the end result won't change."

Tatsu stood and smirked "Yeah you're right, I realize now that I won't get anywhere by trying to defeat you with force. The two of us are exactly the same in that regard."

"And you can't chase me out either, I know you better than anyone else could ever possible know you."

"Then I guess I don't even need to ask whether or not you already know."

"I already know what?"

"The decision I made earlier."

"What the hell are you going on about now?"

"Don't play dumb or act like you don't know. Alright fine, I'll tell you. This place is called the Waterfall of Truth because it's supposed to reveal the truth in your heart right? Just give me a minute to concentrate, and I'll show it to you right now." he clasped his hands together, and writing appeared above him "Number One protector of the Hidden Leaf, Tatsu Kamikaze. This is my autograph, a symbol of who I am, what I am, and what my desire is."

"You bastard…"

"Yeah apparently after I beat Hidan and Kakuzu I became some kind of role model for the students in the academy. They kept asking me for an autograph, but I didn't have one to give them, but now I do."

"So what if you have some lousy autograph?! It's nothing but some big joke! You think you can protect them?! It doesn't matter how strong you become because they'll just keep dying anyway, just like Hayate-sensei did! Don't you remember that? Don't you?!" Dark gripped his chest, tears brimming in his eyes "It was so hard, so painful! I'm the only one who will ever truly understand just how much pain you felt that day, and how much pain you still feel! If you couldn't protect your own master then what makes you think you can protect the others?! How do you know you won't fail them too?!"

"...Maybe I can't. The important thing right now is to have faith in them, but it's also important that I have more faith in right now. Right now, the most important thing that I can do is have more faith in myself. I need to trust and believe in the me that's going to protect all of my friends."

Dark finally fell to his knees, tears streaming down his face "Why… Why… After all the pain you've gone through trying to protect them…"

"You can thank Ino for that, she helped me realize that whether or not I actually do know if I can or not I was born to protect people. She believes in me, it's only right that I have faith in myself."

"Tell me… Do you think I'm just something in your way?! What exactly was I to you?!"

"The fact that you existed was the reason I've become as strong as I have, you're the only reason I've gotten as far as I have."

"And what now?! How do you know you won't fail?! That they won't die?"

"I don't know, for all I know they might end up being the first ones to die or they'll be the last ones. But I know one thing for sure."

"What?!"

"I know that I won't be able to live with myself if I don't at least try."

Dark froze "That's…"

"Yeah, that's what I said about avenging Hayate-sensei."

"So what about me them?!" Dark charged forward "What the hell am I supposed to do from now on?!"

"That's an easy question to answer." Tatsu caught dark in a hug "You just need to become a part of me. After all, you are me aren't you? I can't even begin to thank you enough for everything that you've done for me, but it's alright now. You don't have to wallow in your pain alone anymore."

Dark's arms fell limp to his side, and he slowly evaporated, leaving nothing behind.

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Tatsu slowly stood and opened his eyes ' _You don't have to suffer anymore, not when you've got people beside you who can share your pain. I may not be able to protect all of them, but I'll be damned if I don't try.'_

"So how did it go?" asked Ino "Did it work."

"Let's find out." Tatsu closed his eyes for a moment and stood completely still, then his eyes shot open, now blue with white irides, and he leapt into the air. Then he was enveloped in a cyan cloak of chakra and sent out blasts of wind, lightning, fire, water and earth simultaneously, before he returned to the ground and powered down "Does that answer your question?" he slowly walked over and wrapped her in a tight hug "Thank you Ino, none of this would've been possible without you and I really mean that."

"I guess that's proof that this thing is effective."

Tatsu looked and saw Naruto approaching with Yamato, Motoi and Killer B "Wait, so are you seriously just getting here now?"

"No, I tried first and then found him." he jerked a thumb at Killer B "So I'm guessing things went well on your end?"

Tatsu activated his Tenseigan "You tell me?"

"Nice. Well, wish me luck." then Naruto went to sit and meditate.

"It's too early to celebrate, you hear me fools ya fools." Killer B stepped forward "At least that's what I should say, but first things first, good job." he held out a fist.

"I really can't thank you enough." Tatsu returned the fist bump.

"I didn't do anything, Utakata's the one to thank."

"Oh yeah." then he turned to Utakata "Seriously man, I can't thank you enough."

"So have you erased your doubts?" asked Utakata.

"...No I didn't, I just faced them."

"And that right there Tatsu, that is why you're going to be a great shinobi, and why you won't fail."

"I know."

"And done." Naruto stood and grinned.

"So that's done?"

"Yep."

"That was fast."

"I talk fast."

"And again, it's still too early to celebrate, you hear me fools ya fools." then Killer B once again stepped forward "So what do you guys say, shall we try controlling the powers you hold deep inside you? From this moment I'm gonna be your instructor so prepare yourselves to suffer death or torture!"

"Yeah, bring it on!"

"Follow me fools ya fools, ya know." and he went back behind the waterfall.

"Hey cool, looks like there's something behind the waterfall ya know." Naruto followed him through.

"If I hear ya know one more time, I'm gonna kill both of those two idiots, Tailed Beasts be damned." Tatsu followed him back.

"I'd better go too." Utakata followed them.

"...So should we go too?" asked Ino.

"This is their training, we'd probably just be in the way." Kazuma pointed out ' _Not that things will get any easier from here.'_

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Naruto stared in awe at what he found behind the waterfall "Woah…"

"This is where you'll be fighting the Nine Tails in here." Killer B told him.

"...Did you just say that I'm fighting the Nine Tails?"

"Yeah that's right, you feel me fools ya fools?"

"Yeah."

"Good."

"So what about me?" asked Tatsu "I've already mastered my Tenseigan, what is there for me to do in here?"

"Simple, you've still got to master that power on your back."

"What power?" he looked back "Hold on, you mean the Dragon Blade? Wait a minute, are you saying that-"

"Yeah, you're about to fight the Light Dragon."

"...Killer B, out of everything that's happened since I got to this island, this is by far the most insane! I fought the Light Dragon a year ago, and all I got was that thing breaking every bone in my body!"

"And that's why you have to master the power fool, ya fool!"

"...Fair enough." Tatsu looked around the temple as they continued on "This place looks ancient, the archeology to this place must be important too. These statues should be restored though."

"There's nothing to restore, all of these statues were carved without heads to begin with. There's a reason for it." Utakata told him.

"Fair enough I guess. But seriously though, how the hell are Naruto and I supposed to fight the Nine Tails and the Light Dragon? How do we even go about facing them in the first place? This doesn't involve you doing anything stupid does it?"

"You think you can control powers like that by doing something stupid?" asked Killer B incredulously.

"Look at Naruto!"

"...My point is that this is a sacred place where those selected as jinchuuriki have long come to undergo purification ceremonies." Killer B led them to a spot on the wall at the end "It's up here so you can talk to your Tailed Beast in a special way inside this structure, you hear what I say?"

"Inside there?"

"Only those who have been chosen may enter this place, put your head into this space. If you're a good man who's respected with no darkness in your heart detected, then the door will open and you won't be rejected."

"No darkness in your heart." Naruto realized "That makes sense, so that's why we had to face and defeat our darkness in the Waterfall of Truth."

"However, if there's any darkness in your heart then the doors will not part you'll consent, and the statue will bite off your head and tear you apart, you content? Those headless statues you saw on the way here are of the past jinchuuriki whose hearts weren't sincere."

"...Alright, I'll do it." Naruto stepped forward ' _All I can do at a time like this is believe in myself.'_ and he put his head inside, then suddenly started freaking out.

"Naruto!" Tatsu promptly yanked him out, only to find that Naruto was now decapitated, and yet he remained strangely unfazed "...You just can't help yourself can you?"

"Well leave it to you to ruin a perfect opportunity for a prank." Naruto pulled his head out of his jacket and pouted "Sorry, I just couldn't help myself."

"I know you couldn't."

"I did the same thing." Utakata pointed out "Let's be real for a minute, we _all_ did that. B said that those statues are just there to scare us."

"...Killer B."

"What's up?" asked Killer B.

"Sacred my snow white ass!" then Tatsu looked and saw the door open, revealing the entrance to a hidden room "So what's this?"

"This is where it goes down. You guys both need to go in there, sit down, close your eyes and focus."

"So just like at the Waterfall of Truth."

"Yeah, and once you do all that you'll meet up with your beasts."

"Hey before we do this can I ask you something?"

"What's up?"

"Why are you helping me tame the Genryu spirits? I thought this whole thing was meant strictly for jinchuuriki."

"...Let's just say I feel a kindred spirit." then he led them inside "Listen closely and I'll give you an explanation. Naruto answer my question, what kind of sealing jutsu was used on your Nine Tails?"

Naruto blinked "What kind of-?"

"It's an Eight Signed Tetragram Seal." Tatsu answered for him.

"Yeah, what he said.

Killer B nodded "A tetragram seal huh? I've gotta say that's pretty impressive, it's even more solid than my own Steel Shell Seal. You got the key?"

"Key?" then his eyes lit up in realization "Yeah, I do."

"Good."

"Are you sure about this?" asked Tatsu "I'm all for him getting stronger, but undoing the seal seems pretty risky. But what if something goes wrong and the Nine Tails decides to be a dick and break loose?"

"Then we'll just have to seal him away in here, that's what this place is for. I thought you would have faith in him."

"Oh I do, I just like to be prepared. I never act without making a plan."

"You do like 70% of the time." Naruto pointed out.

"Just because I don't say it out loud doesn't mean I don't think of it."

"You've got that brain fart look on your face at least 55% of the time."

"...Shut up." then he sat down and began meditating.

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Tatsu then found himself in a black void ' _So I'm doing this in Limbo then, actually that makes a lot of sense. Endless space, dilated time, nobody else around.'_

Then the spirit of the Light Dragon appeared " **Tatsu Kamikaze."**

"It's been a long time, your presence is as commanding as ever Hikari."

" **Your presence feels different, it feels pure and cleansed. I see that you have faced your doubts."**

"Yeah but I haven't overcome them."

" **Very few people actually do. It seems that the jinchuuriki of the Eight Tails has decided to train you to master my power."**

"That's the plan."

" **You have proven yourself worthy time and time again Tatsu. However, now you must prove you are truly deserving and powerful enough to wield the full might of the Genryu spirits. Now come!"** the Light Dragon charged.

Tatsu leapt as high into the air as he could ' _So it's one test after another. Dammit, and I had enough of that back in the academy. Which I never actually went to.'_

" **You are aware that I can hear your thoughts, and I've also gained access to your memories since you've acquired the Dragon Blade. Now you must prove yourself truly deserving of my power."**

"Fine by me." blue markings appeared around Tatsu's eyes ' _Like I thought, since my actual body isn't moving I can use Sage Mode no problem.'_ a Rasengan formed in his palm, growing to a massive size " **Sage Art: Massive Rasengan!"** he launched the massive Rasengan downwards.

Hikari blocked the Rasengan with his wing, then let out a shockwave that sent Tatsu flying backwards.

Tatsu recovered and gained some air by jumping off of the wings, only to find one of Hikari's claws above him ' _He's so fast!'_ he leapt out of the way of the claw and blitzed behind Hikari, then grabbed him by the tail and flung him around through the air before finally slamming him into the ground "I'm just beginning!" he leapt up.

Hikari thrusted a claw towards him.

Tatsu formed a Shadow Clone and had it launch him higher into the air, then formed a Rasengan in his hand as he summoned another Shadow Clone, the Rasengan expanding into a certain four pointed shape "Take this! **Sage Art: Wind Style: Rasenshuriken!"** he hurled the Rasenshuriken downwards, detonating on Hikari in the center and weakening him. Then he leapt back to the ground "So what now?"

" **Now you must enter your Tenseigan Chakra Mode and attempt to extract my chakra from my body."**

"Alright." Tatsu entered his Tenseigan Chakra Mode and began sucking out the chakra from Hikari, only for it to suddenly turn black "Wh-What?" his Tenseigan Chakra Mode faded, as did his Sage Mode "What's going on?"

" _Hate you…"_

' _A voice?'_

" _It hurts… kill you…'_

' _These voices… I don't understand, what is this?'_ his right eye suddenly turned white with a black sclera ' _I can't do this… it's too strong… I've gotta get out of here…'_

"It's alright, you don't have to leave." a soft feminine voice spoke.

Tatsu looked around and saw that the black void of Limbo had turned completely white, then looked ahead of him.

A female figure with black hair and black eyes stood before him and smiled softly "You've really grown up, Tatsu."

"Wh-What is this? Who are you? Where did you come from? How did you know my name anyway?"

"Oh that's right, nobody told you did they? Well then, how about you go ahead and try and guess who I am?"

"...Whenever I try to guess at anything it somehow always ends with me being hit in the balls by some f*cking beast."

"Language!" the woman promptly hit him over the head "Fine, how about this. Who was the founder of Death to the Tick week?"

"...Oh."

"Yeah, in our clan it's pretty common to have great respect for the Uzumaki clan but also to have a deep seated hatred for their verbal tick. Nevermind that right now though, let's talk about you for a change. I really hope you didn't end up with any sort of weird quirks."

"Then that means you're…"

"Your big brother really didn't tell you anything did he? Well I guess I shouldn't be surprised, we never have been ones to deal with painful memories."

Tatsu almost instantly wrapped his arms around her, tears falling from his eyes "I've… I've wanted to meet you for so long… mom…"

The woman, Kumiko Kamikaze, returned the hug "I've felt the same, son…"

Then Tatsu finally released her "Where to start, I've got so much to tell you."

"I'll listen to anything you have to say, and you can ask me anything you need to. But first things first, you need to master the power of the Light Dragon." she placed a hand on his chest, her eyes turning blue with white irades "How about I lend you some of my power to finish this fight once and for all."

"Yeah… Yeah, that sounds good."

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Tatsu found himself back in Limbo "Back here again?"

"You were in the middle of a big battle." Kumiko appeared right beside him.

"So you really are here after all Kaa-san."

"Yeah, your father set this up in coordination with your Dragonseed when you were born so I would automatically appear to you here when you truly needed me, whether I would be dead or alive, so I could give you a hand."

"Wait, are you saying that my father knew that I would acquire the power of the Dragon Blade?"

"Yep. Just like your father, right?"

"...You know, Kiba and Shika always said that their moms are scary. I don't see what the big deal is."

"Well to be fair Tsume and Yoshino always were pretty overbearing most of the time, I even found it kind of suffocating being around them sometimes. Kushina was kind of the same, but the only thing I found annoying was her verbal tic."

"I've dreamt at night of throttling Naruto just to get him to stop."

"I know right? Anyway, I usually hung out with Kushina and Mikoto, the mothers of your two other friends Naruto and Sasuke."

"...Wait a minute, so that psychotic redhead I met in Limbo that one time was the woman that spawned Naruto of all people? Yeah, I can see it." then he turned serious "Now then, we've got a fight to finish."

"Right." Kumiko formed a hand seal, and cyan coloured chakra chains suddenly shot out and bound Hikari to the ground.

" **So you've called upon another of your clan."**

' _I feel so calm now, so happy with her by my side. With her here… I know I can do this!'_ with a furious roar, Tatsu flashed back into his Tenseigan Chakra Mode, his blue chakra purifying the black.

"My chakra can't suppress him for very long." Kumiko warned "You better end this while you have the chance."

"Will do, but I'll need you to play your part in this too mom." Tatsu then formed a familiar hand seal " **Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** he summoned 50 clones, each one forming a Rasengan in their hand, and they charged " **Rasengan Super Barrage!"**

" **You have yet to win this battle!"** Hikari dissipated 30 clones with a single sweep on one of his claws.

"I can keep going you know." Kumiko tightened her hold on the chains, causing Hikari to fall to the ground.

"Now!" each Rasengan grew to massive size " **Sage Art: Massive Rasengan Barrage!"** they all fired off the Rasengan barrage, sending Hikari tumbling back.

Eventually, Hikari stopped himself " **Such power…"**

"And one more for the road!" Tatsu charged through the smoke, having dropped his Tenseigan Chakra Mode and gone back to Sage Mode, a golden colored Rasenshuriken in his hand "My newest and most powerful attack! **Tenseigan Art: Golden Wheel Rebirth Rasenshuriken!"** he fired the Tenseigan powered.

" **Such incredible raw power, the resolve alone is nearly staggering…"**

"YOU'RE FINISHED!" Tatsu gave one final push, sending Hikari back using the sheer force of the Rasenshuriken, and managed to pull out a silhouette made of pure chakra, which he then pulled into himself, engulfing him in a white shroud of chakra, before it suddenly dissipated "It's over."

Hikari suddenly appeared before him, completely unharmed " **You have surpassed my expectations Tatsu Kamikaze, none before you have mastered my power to such a degree as this. You will have my power, have all of our power, but only when the time is right. You must survive and prosper until then."** and with that, he disappeared.

"Thank you, Hikari."

Kumiko immediately took Tatsu's hands in hers "You did it Tatsu, you really pulled it off."

"Hey come on mom, was there really any doubt?" then his mood saddened "So mom, what are you going to do now?"

"Well now I can go and join your father."

"I see. But first, there's something I need to ask you, something that I need to know that can't wait any longer." he looked up and looked her dead in the eye "Where were you and my father on the day Naruto was born 16 years ago, where were both of you the night Kurama attacked the Hidden Leaf?"

"...That's something very complicated. To tell you about that, first I have to tell you about the jinchuuriki of the Nine Tails before Naruto. That was his mother, Kushina."

"...Wait a minute, Naruto's mom was the jinchuuriki before him?"

"Yes, she was. Before I can tell you about what happened that night, I need to tell you more about her. Back then she was chosen as the second jinchuuriki host of the Nine Tails- I mean Kurama, and that very purpose was the main reason as to why she came to the Hidden Leaf Village in the first place, all the way from the now extinct Land of Eddies."

"Was it because the Land of Eddies had such a close relationship with the Land of Fire?"

"Yes, that's right. A shinobi from the Senju Clan of the Hidden Leaf and one from the Uzumaki clan of the Hidden Leaf were distantly blood relatives, full of shinobi brimming with vitality the Hidden Eddy was also known as the Village of Longevity. The Uzumaki clan excelled at sealing jutsu, it was their specialty, and the only problem was that they were a bit savage with it. Their village was the original creator of the tetragram seal that Naruto has on his stomach. His mother taught it to his father, along with several other jutsu. Do you see that spiral symbol on the back of your jonin vest?"

"Yeah, you mean the crest of the Hidden Eddy Village."

"That's right, even today in the Hidden Leaf Village it's a symbol of commerottery."

"The academy never mentioned the Hidden Eddy Village, everything I know about it is what I've heard from Kazuma."

"That's because it doesn't actually exist as a village anymore, and it hasn't for a long time. Their abilities with sealing jutsu were greatly feared, so they were targeted and destroyed during the Second Great Ninja War. The survivors fled and hid themselves throughout the various other lands. Kushina had been born with chakra that was naturally very strong even by their standards, and its power was enough to suppress the vast might of Kurama."

"So she was dragged here from her village to be used like some kind of weapon? That's wrong, that's so wrong."

"Yes I know, but it was a different time back then. Tell me, do you know about the legendary battle between the First Hokage Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha?"

"Don't even mention Madara, the bastard is the last person I want to hear about."

"Please, just listen. Anyway, the jinchuuriki before Kushina was actually the woman who would become the wife of the First Hokage, and her name was Lady Mito Uzumaki. During that epic battle, to lend strength to Lord First, who had obtained and subdued Kurama using his Wood Style, Lady Mito sealed Kurama inside herself and ended up turning herself into its first jinchuuriki. The Hidden Leaf has been in possession of Kurama ever since that day, more than 100 years ago. When Lady Mito was nearing her end, Kushina was brought to the Hidden Leaf to be made into the next vessel. Only a few of the elders and Lord Third Hokage were aware of the reasons and circumstances for me coming. Kushina told Mikoto and myself when we became jonin."

"...Mom, as interesting as this has been, I was asking about you and dad. I met with Lord Fourth in Limbo about 4 years ago, and he told me that the entire thing was planned out by some masked bastard from the Akatsuki claiming to be Madara Uchiha."

"Minato must have left a few things out then, well I guess I can't blame him. Anyway he was right, when Kurama attacked the Hidden Leaf 16 years ago that masked Madara Uchiha was the one behind all of it. But right up until the moment the attack happened, Kurama was still sealed inside Kushina."

"So then what happened?"

"That masked Madara was what happened, I don't have any sort of idea how he discovered it but he knew the secret."

"What secret?"

"Somehow he found out about the one single weak point when the Tailed Beast seal on a jinchuuriki is weakened. He was able to time it perfectly and stole Kurama and ripped him right out of her."

"Hold on a minute, what do you mean the one point where the seal is weakened? When in the hell is that supposed to happen?

"It happens during childbirth. During the 9 months in which a female jinchuuriki gets pregnant and gives birth, the seal holding back the Tailed Beast weakens considerably since the energy that's normally used to maintain it is instead diverted to the growing child."

"So then you're saying…"

"It was October 10th, 16 years ago. You were almost a full year old then. By orders of the Lord Third Hokage, Kushina had to give birth inside a barrier at a fair distance away from the Hidden Leaf Village. This measure had to be taken in case the seal came undone when Kushina went into labor and Kurama ended up escaping. Minato was going to be there for the birth, and your father Kuroga was going to be stationed outside on guard with other ANBU Black Ops directly assigned to Lord Third, while I helped Lady Biwako deliver Naruto. Everything related to the birth had to be top secret. Everything with the birth itself went with little to no problems, and Naruto was born."

"I see. _Naruto, you really do touch the lives of everyone around you don't you? Even my parents…'_

"But then it happened. The masked Madara appeared and killed the ANBU guards, and after a brief struggle he cut your father down as well, then somehow entered the barrier with his intangibility jutsu. Then he killed both myself and the other ANBU and medical ninja stationed there, and he held Naruto hostage. Though Minato was able to save Naruto very quickly, Madara was able to control Kurama using his Sharingan after extracting him from Kushina. Then he tried to kill her, but Minato was able to save her, then tucked her and Naruto away in one of his safe houses while he dealt with Madara himself, but by that point Madara had sicked Kurama on the Hidden Leaf. After a difficult battle Minato was able to defeat Madara, but he escaped. There wasn't much they would be able to do against Kurama, so he decided to use his last option: The Reaper Death Seal, to seal Kurama inside Naruto at the cost of his own life, transferring his and Kushina's chakra into the Eight Signed Seal in the process." she wiped away a few tears from her eyes "I'm sorry for leaving you and your brother all alone like that, for leaving you boys to bare such a heavy burden all on your own, for not being there to stay by your side as you grew up, for not being there to give you the love you deserve."

"Please mom, it's alright. You don't have to apologize. Yeah sure I went through a lot of pain and loneliness as a kid, I felt the pain and grief of losing people I love time and time again, firstly when Kazuma faked his death, then when the Third Hokage was killed by Orochimaru, then when I lost Hayate-sensei to the Akatsuki, but I could never blame you or dad for any of that. So yeah I never really had any parents seeing how you guys were both already gone, but I had a bunch of damn good role models that I think more than made up for it. Besides, deep in my gut I always had a feeling and now I really know it for sure because I know that you and dad both sacrificed yourselves to save Naruto, and that's one of the reasons why I have as strong a bond with him as I do. There's more than just the Tenseigan or the Dragonseed inside of me, there's all of your love too and that really does make me happy. All things considered, I really am glad I got to be your kid."

"...Kuroga, did you hear that?" Kumiko wrapped her arms around him "Our hopes really did get through to reach our son after all. Tatsu, thank you so much for letting me become a mother again, and thank you for letting Kuroga become a father again, and thank you for letting Kazuma become a big brother. Thank you for being born to us. Thank you." and with that, she disappeared.

Tatsu wiped away his tears ' _Thank you mom. I promise that I'll eat more than just ramen, meat and the very occasional fruit from now on and include veggies, I already bathe pretty regularly so that isn't an issue. I go to the hot springs at least once a week too, and I'm already getting plenty of sleep. I've already got tons of friends that I just with my life, and four in particular that are so much more to me. Naruto, Sasuke, Lee… Ino. I just wish you and dad would be here to meet them. As for my studies, I never was very big on written stuff but I've spent the last 7 years training like crazy under Kazuma, Asuma, Kakashi, Hayate-sensei and everybody else. A lot has happened with my teachers and upperclassmen when I was in the academy, but no matter what I have nothing but respect for them. Hayate-sensei taught me about all of the three shinobi prohibitions, though all of them have broken at least one of them at some point. But despite everything, Hayate-sensei taught me how a shinobi should live. He was a great shinobi, a great man, and a great father figure. I am Tatsu Kamikaze, jonin of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. My dream is to see Naruto become Hokage, and I will become the strongest shinobi the world has ever seen.'_ he put his fist against his heart "Count on it!"

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Tatsu opened his eyes and smirked "Done and done guys."

Then Naruto opened his own eyes "Yeah!"

"So how did things go on your end? What exactly happened with you?"

"A lot of this and a lot of that." Naruto held out his fist.

"Oh so that's how it is." Tatsu met the fist in the middle "You're so cool and collected even to me, I guess that means things went well. Oh, and I can see you used _that_ in that situation."

"Yeah, and you putting your thing into play there was pretty damn awesome too."

"I know right? Wait, don't tell me- Oh no way a in hell, you don't mean that-?"

"Yeah you know it, you're damn right you know!"

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Lee immediately bolted out of bed when he heard the news from Yahiko "What?! I had no idea that Naruto and Tatsu were undergoing training as intense as that! Why the hell didn't anyone tell me?!"

"That's because you've been so seasick since we got here." Yahiko pointed out.

"I don't give a damn about that, I can't and won't stand by while my friends are going through such struggles! Take me to Tatsu and Naruto right away!" and he bolted out the door at full speed.

"...Sorry about that, he can be kind of over to top, but he's nowhere near as bad as his sensei is in that regard."

"No problem." Motoi waved it off, still dumbstruck "Master Killer B is a lot like that too."

"Let's just hope Guy and Killer B never meet, the fabric of time and space won't be able to handle two of them in the same location at once."

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"So now I can use my Tenseigan Chakra Mode freely." Tatsu quickly flashed into his Tenseigan Chakra Mode "See?"

"Yeah I know what you mean, now I have most of Kurama's chakra stored inside of me in an area separated from my own chakra so I'm not using it all the time." Naruto flashed into his Kurama Chakra Mode "This is how it is when I tap into Kurama's chakra that I have stored away in there, pretty cool isn't it?"

"I've gotta admit man, that really is-" then Tatsu paused, his eyes hardening "Naruto."

"Do you feel it too?"

"Yeah."

"What is it?" asked Utakata.

"We've got an intruder amongst us." then Tatsu looked in the direction of Samehada on Killer B's back "Just give it up, you don't have a hope in hell of hiding from the two of us anymore."

"You're saying that there's another chakra in here?"

Killer B started doing his thing "Yeah he senses another presence. That I didn't was careless of me, I must do penance!"

"Will you shut up!" Tatsu barked "The point is that the intruder is hiding inside your sword."

From where he was hiding inside Samehada, Kisame cringed ' _That's impossible! My chakra signature is the same as Samehada, nobody should be able to sense it!'_

"It's not chakra that Naruto and I are sensing, it feels hazy but it's definitely something else. It's something a lot more sinister and malicious, and it's coming from inside the sword!"

Then Samehada wriggled its way off of Killer B's back, and Kisame poked his head out "It appears the two of you are able to sense hate and other various emotions. That ability doesn't fit any known sensory type, it must be the power of a jinchuuriki who's achieved control over the Nine Tails or a Kamikaze who's achieved control over the Tenseigan."

"Hold on, you're that shark guy from the Akatsuki!" Killer B recognized him "But how? I thought we chopped his head off a good while back, back in the Land of Iron. So how in the world did you evade me and my brother's tag team attack?"

"It was really quite, I merely switched places with a clone while we were battling inside the bubble of water. You only cut off the head of my clone."

"But clones only simply disappear when you hit them hard enough, and the corpse still remained post mortem, no question. If someone else had transformed into you then my buddy C would have sensed it for sure! A perplexing constempation."

"It was a very special kind of clone, a parasitic clone that can be operated remotely by the caster. Well we should leave it at that for now, but in in this situation, to be facing three jinchuuriki and a Tenseigan user, that's far too much even for me." he crawled along the wall and hit a certain hidden button, opening the door.

"No way, how did you ever figure out the way to open the door to this room?"

"Now that's a rather foolish question, after all I did come all the way out here to act as a spy you know." and he started crawling along the wall towards the door.

"He's getting away!"

"No he's not!" Naruto blitzed forward and punched Kisame directly in the back.

Tatsu smirked ' _He's so fast now, he might even be faster than the Fourth Hokage or the Raikage.'_

' _Damn, this feels awesome!'_

Kisame coughed up blood ' _He's so fast it's unbelievable!'_ then he broke free and got out of the chamber.

"Dammit!" Naruto suddenly found that his foot was caught in the wall "Dammit my leg, I hit the wall too hard and now I'm stuck in here!"

"Oh for the love of-" Tatsu let out a groan "Killer B help Naruto, Utakata and I will go after Kisame!"

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"So let me see if I've got this." Lee said slowly "You're supposed to meditate in front of this waterfall and your true self appears to you? Is this for real, like you're not making all of this stuff up?"

Motoi nodded "Yes it is, and Naruto and Tatsu also defeated their true selves here."

"...I see."

"So what do you think Lee?" asked Shisui "You wanna give it a shot?"

"Hell yeah I wanna give it a shot!" Lee leapt onto the island "Let's go!"

"...Somehow I doubt your true self is even human."

Lee just drowned him out ' _Here goes nothing.'_

"Pathetic." a voice spat out from behind the waterfall "Do you really think you can become a great ninja without any ninjutsu or genjutsu? A brat who's barely a man will just end up getting himself killed if he overdoes it. I know you have to keep up this appearance for the sake of Guy-sensei and Fu but face it, you can't become a great ninja just by wishing it so you fool."

"Is that really what you believe? Then come out and face me, I'll show exactly how strong my resolve truly is!"

"Very well then, know thy true self!"

' _Here he comes!'_

"Now!" then Kisame suddenly burst out of the waterfall, forcing Lee to snap out of it.

"What the f*ck?! That thing is supposed to be my true self?! Some kind of weird insect guy or something?!"

' _Isn't that that odd beast brat?'_

"Looks to me like I've forgotten what my resolve is, I can remind myself of it by bringing you down!"

Shisui face palmed "Lee you idiot that isn't your true self, stop it from getting away!"

"Right! **Leaf Rock Crush!"** Lee elbowed Kisame in the face, then followed up with a whirlwind kick, sending Kisame crashing into the rock "Yeah that- wait a minute…"

"Guys!" then Tatsu burst out with Utakata "Kisame hid himself inside Samehada and infiltrated the island with Killer B!"

"...What do you guys mean that wasn't my true self?"

"Oh you're doing Waterfall of Truth training? Cool. Anyway here's a hint, you're supposed to pacify and purify your true self instead of doing our usual thing and beating the living crap out of him. Oh and by the way, if you open your eyes then you're automatically sent back here to reality."

"Oh, well that's neat." then he looked at Kisame "Now that I think about it, isn't that-? Yeah it is, it's a pufferfish!"

' _Yeah like I thought, he's an idiot.'_

"No wait, maybe it was called a porcupine fish."

Then Yahiko suddenly grinned "Well there are a bunch of other strange creatures living here so I guess that there's a chance it could be… Hey Motoi, is that really a puffer fish? I hear they're supposed to be super tasty!" he started drooling.

"Are all of you deliberately pretending to be complete and utter idiots?!" Motoi finally lost his temper.

"Oh trust me, they're not pretending." Ino said dryly, with Shisui and Kazuma nodding sagely in agreement.

Kisame smirked "I see you still haven't changed one bit, you're still dumber than the most wild of beasts."

"Oh yeah right, what's going on?"

"Kisame has been hiding inside of Killer B's sword." explained Tatsu "He's been gathering tons of intel on us and the Allied Shinobi Force all this time, we can't let him get away with that intel."

"Right! **Lightning Style: Purple Tiger!"** Ino fired off a purple tiger made of lightning.

"Dammit!" Kisame was forced to retreat from Samehada to dodge it, turning back to his normal form in the process, only for Samehada to run off "Damn you Samehada!"

' _That's Kisame Hoshigaki, the shark guy in the Akatsuki that was teamed up with Itachi. How did he even get here?'_ then she noticed Samehada rubbing against her legs, so she gently knelt down and rubbed its head ' _It's weird, but I feel like I can understand it._ I see, so he forced you to hide him inside of you. That must have been hard for you but don't worry, we'll take it from here girl."

"That thing's a girl?" asked Yahiko "How can you tell?"

"It's weird, but I feel like I can understand it somehow."

' _If that's how it is, then fine.'_ Kisame swam underwater towards Samehada and grabbed her by the tail.

Ino suddenly found Samehada biting onto her "Easy girl, you don't have to be so rough."

Then Tatsu noticed that Kisame was gone "Dammit, he escaped. And he's a water style user, so- Dammit! Ino get away from the sword, Kisame is using it to steal your chakra!"

"What?" then Ino staggered slightly, feeling rather weakened.

That was when Kisame finally finished replenishing himself on Ino's chakra ' _Excellent. It seems the girl has rather impressive reserves of chakra, but that just means more chakra for me to absorb.'_

" **Leaf Hurricane!"** Lee charged in and attacked.

Kisame blocked the attack and threw him away ' _Perfect, now my chakra reserves have been completely restored.'_ he formed a hand seal " **Water Style: Water Shark Bomb Jutsu!"** he then summoned a water shark and hid himself inside, then pushed Lee out of the way as he made his escape.

"Dammit!" Tatsu swore "Hurry, he's getting away! He's fast, if gets past the barrier surrounding the island then it's completely over! We've gotta stop him before he gets off the island or even I won't be able to track him down!"

Lee bolted back to his feet "Don't worry guys, I'll stop him! **Eight Inner Gates: Sixth Gate of Joy: Open!"** Lee opened the Sixth Gate, the force surprising all of the animals surrounding the island.

"Alright Lee, get ready!" Shisui activated his Mangekyo Sharingan, then formed one of the arms of his Susanoo "I'll throw you after him, and remember that the direction is 2 o'clock!"

"Right!" Lee leapt into the hand "Throw me!"

"GO!" Shisui threw Lee into the air after Kisame as hard as he could.

"Nice throw." Tatsu commented.

"Yeah…" then Ino suddenly collapsed.

"I've got you." Tatsu caught her and gently set her down on the dry ground "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, just a little drained is all… I'll be fine in a minute…"

"I have my doubts about that, the sword drained way too much of your chakra. At this point, I'd be surprised if you could even stand. It's a clear fact that Kisame can absorb chakra so I'm pretty much useless against him, the same going for everyone else here, and Naruto and Killer B are still behind that waterfall. The only problem there is that Naruto has a busted ankle and Killer B is the one who's treating him. Right now Lee is our last and best chance of stopping Kisame from leaving the island, if he gets away with all of the intel he's gathered then we're all screwed." then he noticed Samehada crawling towards them "Oh great, look if you're gonna try and steal more of her chakra then just know that I'll blast you into oblivion before I let you do that."

"No Tatsu, it's alright…" Ino held out a hand and gave Samehada a gentle smile "Come here girl, it's alright."

Samehada slowly crawled forward and placed its hilt on her arm, transferring chakra the chakra it stole back to her.

Ino sat up and got back to her feet "I'm alright, really."

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Lee was soaring through the air, but found that he was slowing down ' _I guess I'm gonna need a boost, I'm counting on you Ningame.'_ he bit his thumb and formed a hand seal " **Summoning Jutsu!"** he slammed his hand down.

Then Ningame appeared " **I don't see you or your sensei in forever and when I do you summon me in mid air?"**

"Sorry Ningame, but I need to borrow your back!" Lee then ricocheted off of Ningame's back, then sent himself flying, leaving Ningame to fall to the ground.

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The shore of the island was quiet and isolated.

Kisame looked around and smirked ' _Good, looks like I managed to give that idiotic brat the slip.'_ then he bit his thumb and formed a hand seal " **Summoning Jutsu!"** he summoned a shark, then pulled a scroll out of his mouth and placed it in the mouth of the shark.

"HEY!" then Lee suddenly burst down onto the surface of the water.

"My aren't you the persistent one?"

"So that scroll you gave to the shark contains all of the intel you gathered on us does it? Well forget it, I'm not letting it get away."

"I wouldn't be so sure of that boy, I have the topographical advantage here." he slammed his hand down on the watery surface " **Water Style: Thousand Hungry Sharks!"** he sent forward one thousand sharks made of water.

' _Dammit, I can't even tell which shark it is anymore! Then again, if that's the case then I don't need to hold back!_ Come at me bros! **Fire Style: Asakujaku!"** Lee promptly unleashed a barrage of fire-enhanced punches, incinerating a large number of sharks, only to realize that a good number still remained when his barrage ended ' _So where's the scroll with the intel? Dammit, there's still too many of them. I guess it can't be helped, I'll have to expand the blast radius. Sorry Guy-sensei, but during times of war we'll have to make an exception.'_ he dove down underwater and met Kisame face to face.

"So you won't let the sharks in the water get by either will you? Very well then, I'll just have to let them all tear you apart."

" **Eight Inner Gates: Seventh Gate of Shock: Open!"** Lee promptly opened the seventh of the Eight Gates, releasing the blue vapor.

"Yes I see, so that's how it is. Your fists move so fast that the friction causes flames to erupt, a taijutsu move that destroys with fire and the shockwave of punched air. You really are an odd beast, a shinobi as skilled in taijutsu as this truly is rare. Then again, I have known two other ones."

"Get ready shark man, this next taijutsu attack is far beyond even my last move! It's a single blow attack, hardly anyone has ever seen it!"

"It's impressive that your blue chakra is pushing the water away." Kisame formed a single hand seal " **Water Style: Super Water Shark Bomb Jutsu!"** he unleashed a water shark that was much larger than the ones before.

" **Hirudora!"** Lee fired off a punch that took the silhouette of a white tiger that clashed with the water shark.

' _This Super Water Shark Bomb is no ordinary jutsu, it starts out already strong and gets even stronger by absorbing chakra. In other words, the stronger my opponent is the stronger my jutsu becomes.'_ then Kisame noticed something off "Wait, what's going on? I know the jutsu has absorbed his chakra, but it's not getting stronger! I'm certain that I absorbed his chakra! Was that not a chakra energy bomb?!"

"Now roar with the passion of my soul!" Lee pushed the Hirudora even further, overpowering the Super Water Shark Bomb and engulfing Kisame, as well as destroying all of the remaining water sharks.

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Everyone could feel the shockwave on the other side of the island.

"What in the world is that?" asked Motoi.

"That's Hirudora." explained Tatsu "That's the level of power Lee is able to unleash when he opens the Seventh Gate."

Naruto blinked "Hirudora? What a lame name for a jutsu, I thought Lee wanted to sound cool and not like some lame dork."

"This coming from Mr Sexy Jutsu- Oh crap, brace for the shockwave!"

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When the attack subsided, Lee stood over Kisame, still in the Seventh Gate and now clutching the scroll "It's over, don't you dare move or I won't hold back."

"That jutsu of yours." Kisame muttered "It wasn't a chakra energy bomb was it? And what's that blue aura you're emitting?"

"Hirudora isn't a ninjutsu attack that uses chakra, it's actually a taijutsu move. It's nothing more than an ordinary punch but it's a super fast one, a focused blast of pressurized air aimed right at your opponent. After initial compression, it spreads quickly outwards. As for your other question this aura surrounding me isn't chakra, anyone who opens the Seventh Gate of Shock will perspire blue sweat like this. What you're seeing is evaporation from my passion and exertion."

"Ah no wonder, what I had first thought was an energy bomb seemed to shrink but wasn't nullified. This is the third time we have clashed you know, I can't believe you still have a move like this up your sleeve. And yet you still don't take me seriously." Kisame's finger twitched.

Lee promptly punched him in the gut, causing him to cough up blood and pass out "I thought I told you not to move."

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Things grew quiet after the battle.

Once Lee had brought him back to shore, Yamato promptly bound Kisame using stocks made with his Wood Style chakra "There."

Naruto grinned "Nice one Bushy Brows, you really took him down."

Killer B grinned and started rapping "I guess you really are capable despite your looks Bushy Brows, but that blue sweat of yours sure packs some pows."

Tatsu felt his eye twitching "Killer B?"

"Yeah?"

Tatsu promptly sent him flying into a tree with one punch "You don't have the right to rap when you're the one who brought him here!"

Ino stepped up and knelt down in front of Kisame "We know he's an idiot but this is a great chance, if this goes well then I can get the plans of the Akatsuki and the true identity of their leader. I'm not as good at this as daddy is, but I'm going in for the intel." she placed one hand on Kisame's head "Alright, here I go." and she started the jutsu, cutting off any contact from the outside world.

"She's right, it is a good opportunity." then Tatsu punched Killer B again "I don't give a rat's ass how good of an opportunity it is, you still brought him here!"

"Hey fool, that wasn't my fault!" Killer B whined "I didn't know he was inside the sword, I cut his head off on the right chord!"

"Stop rapping before I rip out your vocal chords! And that's another thing, why the hell would you take the sword with you?!"

"It was a souvenir!"

"And look at how that turned out!" then he looked at Samehada "No offense to you, I'm just making a point."

Samehada let out to squeal.

"Yes exactly, the point being that he's a complete idiot."

Samehada started gesturing towards Ino.

"You like her?"

A nod.

"What is it you like about her though?"

A squeal.

"A sweet initial taste, yet it's mixed with a little bit of spice after swallowing. Yeah, that sounds about right with her."

Then Ino suddenly cried out and stumbled back "What the-?"

"Ino, are you alright? What happened?"

"It's unbelievable, he bit off his own tongue in order to wake him up so he could stop me from extracting intel on the Akatsuki."

Kisame began laughing triumphantly ' _Madara, you once trusted me enough to tell me of your goal. Project Tsuki no Me, it was going to create a true world free of the lies that made me who I am today. I would have liked to have gotten there, but in the end I guess it was just never meant to be.'_ with a roar, he broke free of his restraints.

Tatsu got into a combat stance ' _Yamato was suppressing his chakra using his Wood Style, but to think he still had that much strength left, well I guess he's in the Akatsuki for a good reason._ I guess this guy just doesn't know when to give up."

"Tatsu, be sure to recapture him alive." Ino told him "This could be our last chance for us to get his intel…"

"You." Kisame pointed at Ino, his voice warped and mangled from biting off his own tongue, but not so much it wasn't understandable, then pointed at Samehada "I entrust Samehada to you." he formed a hand seal " **Water Prison Jutsu!"** he surrounded himself in a water prison.

"I don't think so!" Tatsu thrusted the Dragon Blade forward, but couldn't reach Kisame ' _Damn, I can't reach into this wall of water._ He used the Water Prison Jutsu on himself, does that mean he's going to-?"

" **Summoning Jutsu!"** Kisame summoned three sharks inside the water prison.

Tatsu withdrew his sword "Keep your cool guys, no need to panic. Just look at the situation he's in, he can't do anything." his eyes flashed into the Tenseigan.

Despite the circumstances of his situation, Kisame smiled ' _Itachi, it's just like you said. Back when we were partnered up together, back when we first met, you told me that no matter who you are, you do not truly know what kind of man you've become until the moment when you reach the very end. One realizes one's true nature at the moment of death, isn't that what you said? Tell me Itachi, did you find it at the moment of your death? Did you discover the kind of person you truly were? Well Itachi, it seems that in the end I was not such a worthless human being after all.'_ and with that, Kisame allowed himself to be devoured by his sharks, leaving everyone shocked by his actions. When it was over, the water prison dispelled, and the blood covered sharks all disappeared, never to be summoned again.

"Unbelievable." Ino muttered "He actually fed himself to his own sharks. Well he was injured and weakened, I guess he figured that he wouldn't be able to escape from us."

Yamato promptly fell to his knees in disbelief "A member of Akatsuki who was strong enough to be paired with Itachi and was long feared as the Monster of the Hidden Mist, I never imagined he would die this kind of death."

"Is he dead though?" asked Yahiko "I mean, is he _really_ dead?"

Ino gently embraced Samehada as she heard its cries "She's so sad that she's actually started crying, and I can't sense his chakra either. No question about it, he really did take his own life."

"Yeah, but still." Naruto muttered "He willingly gave his own life instead of giving up any information on his comrades. Even in the Akatsuki, there remain some who put their comrades before themselves." his mind flashed to Konan and Nagato.

Lee put a hand on his shoulder "It's true that he was an enemy, but all things considered I have a deep respect for him. Guy-sensei once told me that the measure of a shinobi's life is determined by the manner of his death." he looked at the spot where Kisame once stood and made a solemn vow "Kisame Hoshigaki, I will remember you for the rest of my life."

"Well said." Yahiko knelt down and picked up the scroll "In any case we made sure our intel wasn't leaked to the Akatsuki."

"But he recorded all of his intel in that scroll." Utakata pointed out "His plan was to smuggle it out of here, if that's the case then we should confirm the contents of the scroll and find out what he knew and what he was interested in so we can counter them."

"Yeah, good idea." Yahiko opened the scroll, only for water to explode out of the scroll and trap them all in water prison "This water is heavy, it's the Water Prison Jutsu! He left a booby trap in that scroll!"

"No shit, what gave you that idea genius?!" Tatsu exploded, then noticed multiple sharks emerging from the scroll "Guys watch out!" he quickly annihilated his shark with a miniature Rasengan ' _Lee's still drained from using the Eight Gates, and I don't know how the others will hold out._ Just hold on guys, I'll have you all out of there in a second!"

"No, don't worry about us!" Kazuma shouted "Just go get the shark that has the intel, you can't let it get away!"

"But-"

"Just go, don't forget that in war the objective is more important than the man!"

"...Right." Tatsu quickly raced off after the shark.

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Madara had gone to the Hidden Rain Village to obtain Nagato's Rinnegan, implanting it into his right eye, and when he returned Black Zetsu presented him with the intel Kisame had sent via his shark.

 **A/N:**

 **I'm not writing out any more of Killer B's rapping than I have to, mainly because I'm terrible at it.**

 **I didn't bother writing out Naruto's training at the Waterfall of Truth because you all know how that went.**

 **Now Tatsu has the power of the Tenseigan at his disposal, I had to give him the Negative Emotion Sensing.**

 **I also thought it would give Tatsu a little more bonus character development if he met his mother. After all, Naruto met his so why not?**

 **I also thought it would be cool if Ino got Samehada, it was just an idea that popped into my head so I figured why not.**

 **In case I didn't make it clear, the original White Zetsu is dead. His neck got snapped by the Raikage and he was incinerated by Kazuma.**


	26. Island Ambush, Departure for War

Naruto knelt down in front of Lee "Hey Bushy Brow, you doing okay? Is there anything I can do to help you?" he touched him, causing him to scream in pain ' _Oh yeah, the after effects of using the Eight Gates. Just touching him will make him scream._ Oh crap Bushy Brow, I'm really sorry about that." he dropped him, earning another scream ' _Gentle, right.'_

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Motoi finished writing up his report "That guy's Water Prison Jutsu really delayed me from getting the word out about our intel leak."

"For now, we have to assume that the enemy knows about our location." Kazuma told him, then lowered his voice "And that means that we're going to have to somehow move Naruto and the others out of here right now, I have little doubt that the enemy is going to try and make a move soon."

"I understand. However…" Motoi summoned a messenger hawk "We'll move them but not by boat, they'll both remain here on this island."

"What do you mean?"

"Guys." then Tatsu dropped down with Shisui, Killer B and Ino, who now carried Samehada on her back.

"Well guys, how did it go?"

Ino shook her head "None of us were able to track the shark down, even Samehada couldn't sniff it out. Sorry."

"It can't be helped." then Kazuma turned back to Motoi "I don't understand, how are you going to move them without taking them from the island?"

Motoi raised an eyebrow "You were never told?"

"Never told what?"

"You cannot find this place on a map, and even if you do know it exists it's still hard to find. That's because it's actually…"

Kazuma's jaw nearly dropped at what he heard "...What?! Motoi, did you just say what I think you said?"

"That's right, this happens to be a mobile stronghold. This island is a massive turtle that has been reared by the Hidden Cloud since ancient times."

"...So we're standing on-"

"Of course we can assume that the enemy already knows this, but this island is still far safer than any boat for the sake of travelling to the Hidden Mist Village. Besides Naruto thinks that he's here for a top secret ecological survey, if we move him off the island then he's bound to grow suspicious." he winced at Lee's constant screams of pain and agony.

"I see."

"So do you have a plan then?" asked Tatsu.

"...I think I do." Kazuma pulled out a scroll ' _I just hope it will work._ Naruto, can you come over here?"

Naruto then came over "What's up?"

"We just received a message from Lady Hokage." Kazuma opened a scroll "The Five Great Nations face a critical situation as they prepare for the Fourth Great Ninja War, there's been some concern that the shinobi and samurai so a third military unit made up of the animals here on the island is to be formed. Therefore, it has been decided that a jinchuuriki who is able to communicate with animals and loves them like Naruto Uzumaki will be given the important tasks of assembling and organizing this animal unit. This is a top secret S rank mission, you must work diligently for the fate of the world may depend on it. This is from Lady Hokage herself."

"...This…"

' _Did he buy it? Please tell me he bought it.'_

Naruto had anime tears of joy running down his face "This is just the kind of intellectual mission that I've been waiting for! It's the kind that Shikamaru always gets where you have to coordinate people!"

"Well coordinate animals to be more exact. _Just leave it to Naruto, lucky for us he fell for our plan. Well you know what they say Kazuma, jinchuuriki can be odder than most but in a situation like this that's putting it pretty mildly.'_

"Granny Tsunade understands me well, I bet she's just trying to test out my badass leadership skills! Alright, let's get this mission started already!"

"You say that like I'm going with you."

"I need your help on this Kazuma, you've trained here so you must know about all of the animals on this island don't you?"

"Look why don't you just go and talk to King, he's like the Lady Tsunade of all of the animals around here."

"...By that you mean-?"

"Big, hairy and angry, but with good leadership skills."

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In the Mountain's Graveyard, Madara, Kabuto and Black Zetsu all entered a special room where the Gedo Statue rested atop of a large flower, and beneath it was a clone of the body Hashirama Senju.

Further beneath them was an army of 100,000 White Zetsu clones ready to be deployed against the 87,000 of the Allied Shinobi Forces.

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In the Hidden Mist Village, the Five Kage, as well as Mifune and Shibuki, were discussing their strategy since the Akatsuki now knew of Naruto's whereabouts, while Onoki volunteered to head to the island.

And when Onoki's back started acting up, Shibuki decided to go as well.

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Once they were on the way to the island, Kabuto placed the kunai in Deidara's brain, allowing him to come to "Well it looks like you're finally awake, now my jutsu is a little bit different from that of Lord Orochimaru but with this method you won't be completely held back. Are you hearing me Deidara? I must tell you that I know very little about art, and not a lot about you either."

Deidara smirked "Yes of course, my artistic ninjutsu is simply too sublime to be easily understood or appreciated. However I am quite grateful to you, I have already perfected one ultimate art after all but now I can take my art even further."

"Actually speaking of which, that final explosion of yours didn't really create the buzz that you wanted to the extent you wanted did it?"

"...I already told you that my art is not easily understood, it takes time! A long time!"

"There's no need for you to lose your temper, I completely understand!"

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The group was watching Naruto attempt to get the animals put away into a tunnel in the giant turtle shell.

"The Akatsuki might come here." Kazuma noted "That's why we're hiding all of the animals inside the giant turtle shell, just to be on the safe side."

"Unbelievable." Shisui muttered "Naruto is taking this ecological survey cover story a lot more seriously than I thought he would."

"Yeah but there will be hell to pay if he finds out that this whole thing is just to keep him out of the war." Tatsu pointed out "There's no way he's just going to cooperate with the plan, he'll charge onto the battlefield head first like an angry rhino. As much as I hate lying to him, we can't let that happen. This entire war is about us trying to protect him, Killer B and Utakata."

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The small Akatsuki party continued flying towards the island.

"According to the intel Kisame sent, the island should be right around here." Kabuto noted "It looks like they must have already moved."

Then Onoki suddenly appeared and punched Kabuto through the chest, pushing him off the clay bird with his gravity manipulation ' _Got him!'_

"What a lousy punch. _If I recall then this man must be…_ Ambushed by the Tsuchikage himself?"

"I was only testing you out, and judging from your response you're nothing but a clone. _So it really isn't Madara after all. But still…_ So what's up with Deidara and that hideous bird?"

"Oh I can assure you, it's really him." then _Kabuto_ dissolved into clay.

' _Damn, he's trying to trap me!'_

"Hey there old man Onoki!" then Deidara came flying towards him, turning into clay in the process "Long time no see!"

"You too huh?" then he got smashed in between them and caught in the ensuing explosion that followed.

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Tatsu let out a sigh as he watched Naruto and Killer Bee arguing over the gender of a feminine armadillo ' _How do I always let myself get into these kinds of things?'_

Motoi suddenly froze ' _What is this? Something is approaching at very high speeds, and whatever it is it isn't human.'_

"What is it Motoi, what's the matter?"

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It had actually been Manda II, a genetic clone of the real Manda created by Kabuto, and it killed the giant squid when it tried to stop it.

But that wasn't the only dilemma in this situation.

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Onoki then emerged, as well as Shibuki, Kurotsuchi and Akatsuchi, having substituted with a Stone Clone before he was killed by the blast "You took me a little bit by surprise Deidara, I had heard that you were already dead after all. I wasn't expecting your clay clones."

Deidara scowled "The Stone Clone of the Tsuchikage, I should've figured as much."

Kurotsuchi grinned "Brother Deidara, I thought you had blown yourself up in some kind of flashy explosion."

"Yeah, does that mean you didn't die after all?" asked Akatsuchi.

"Please Akatsuchi, you shouldn't get so excited." Shibuki told him from where he was holding onto Akatsuchi's back.

"Why not?"

"Take a good look at his eyes, he's been brought back from the dead using the Reanimation Jutsu used by the Second Hokage and Orochimaru. That means that isn't the real one."

"Dammit." Onoki grumbled "You're still causing trouble even in death, a youngster from the Hidden Leaf defeats you and then you have the gall to try and sneak back in amongst us of the living."

"Just shut up old man!" Deidara barked "I killed that damn Sasuke Uchiha, and you'll be next for constantly mocking and insulting my art you old geezer!"

' _It seems Deidara doesn't really know anything about that Uchiha brat._ That's enough out of you, there's no way you can escape from me let alone the four of us."

Kabuto smirked "You actually believe you're stalling us here don't you? I knew that there was going to be an ambush, did you think I would merely saunter in here without any sort of strategy?"

"And just what do you mean by that?"

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Motoi was visibly shake "It's inconceivable, we've been found out already. That's completely unbelievable!"

"Well how about it Motoi?" asked Tatsu, only to be met by a pained roar.

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Kabuto smirked when he heard the roar of pain ' _It looks like he's found them._ Sorry, but we really need to hurry and go over there."

"And why is that exactly?" asked Deidara, only to find himself flying Kabuto forward against his own will "What the hell? My body isn't responding to me! What are you doing?!"

"No way, he's already found them?" Onoki flew after them.

"Let's go." Shibuki leapt off of Akatsuchi's back and formed several hand seals " **Water Style: Riding Tidal Wave!"** he landed on a high wave of water, following after Onoki as fast as the wave would carry him.

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' _So they're following? No matter.'_ Kabuto smirked calmly to himself ' _I created a second Manda from the cells of the original after it had an unfortunate… accident… His size, strength and sensory abilities all far surpass those of the first one. The fact that the island is an animal turns out to be it's one fatal flaw.'_

Deidara looked down and saw Manda II attacking the island "What is that, some kind of island? I don't get it, what's so special about that place?"

"That's no island, it's actually a giant turtle that's on the move and the Six Tails, Eight Tails and Nine Tails are on it."

"...Firstly, you said that that thing is a turtle? Secondly, the Six, Eight and Nine Tails are all down there?"

"Yes that's right, and this is the perfect opportunity for us to capture all three of them in one fell swoop."

"I see, so that means that that damned Naruto brat is down there is he? Alright I'm game, what's the plan?"

"The first move is to stop that turtle island, give me a big one Deidara."

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"Dammit, he's so fast." Onoki muttered "Hurry up boy."

"I'm hardly worth calling a boy Lord Tsuchikage." Shibuki rose the wave high enough so he was right beside Onoki "And why exactly didn't you bring Kurotsuchi and Akatsuchi with you?"

"They're not ready for something like this, and I wanted to see what you were capable of."

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"Alright." Deidara promptly created a clay jellyfish and sent it to swim directly underneath the turtle island.

"Do it now." Kabuto told him.

"Right." Deidara formed a hand seal and detonated the clay jellyfish, the force causing the turtle island to flip completely over.

"Good work."

"I do what I do." then Deidara looked at the turtle island "I flipped it over, it won't be able to move now."

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" **Wood Style: Deep Forest Emergence!"** Yamato quickly unleashed his Deep Forest Emergence to save Naruto and the animals.

" **Water Style: Liquid Surface!"** Ino formed a floor made of water to save the shinobi from plummeting to their potential deaths.

"Oh man, what in the hell is going on today?" Naruto muttered.

Killer Bee shrugged "I can't believe it but the heavens and earth really did trade places fool ya fool."

"I noticed." then Naruto looked at the feminine armadillo "I knew it!" he started writing down the information he gathered on its… ahem… personal area "I don't give a damn if the entire world is flipping over, a male is still a male."

"Naruto!" Yamato lost his temper "Out of all the times you should be doing an ecological survey, this is not one of them!"

Tatsu smacked him on the back of the head "For crying out loud Yamato don't lose your temper like that, don't forget that this is supposed to be an S rank mission."

"Something is definitely happening out there." Shisui noted "But we still have to maintain our cover story."

"We can't let Naruto and the others go outside, Utakata is pretty sensible about stuff like this but Naruto and Killer B are a whole other story. We'll just have to handle this ourselves. To that end, we shouldn't send any hitters that are too heavy, but we can't send anyone weak as f*ck either, so that rules out me, Kazuma, Shisui and Motoi. Lee's still out of commission, so that would leave Hotaru, Yamato and Ino."

The three in question nodded "Right."

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Deidara dropped Kabuto off on the surface of the island "Kabuto you go ahead and look for the three jinchuuriki, I'll fight the other two of them here seeing how I owe them absolutely nothing less."

"Fine by me, but just be sure not to take too long." Kabuto told him.

"Whatever."

Then a pissed off Onoki showed up, with Shibuki right behind him "Deidara, the time has come for you to feel my wrath!"

"Oh great, it looks like the geezer has finally snapped."

"You do remember this don't you?" Onoki summoned his Particle Style, this time in the form of a cube.

' _This just keeps getting worse and worse, don't tell me he's going right to Particle Style!'_

' _This looks bad.'_ Kabuto promptly ran off, with Deidara retreating in the other direction.

"You're not getting away!" Onoki prepared to fire off his jutsu.

"Lord Tsuchikage, don't!" Shibuki suddenly appeared in front of him.

"What do you think you're doing boy?"

"You can't unleash your Particle Style Here or you'll end up killing the turtle island."

"What? Oh yes, you're right. Damn what a mess, it's so big that it just looks like a rock."

' _Now's my chance!'_ Deidara sent a small clay bird towards them and detonated it, engulfing both Shibuki and Onoki in the ensuing explosion.

When the smoke cleared, it was revealed that Shibuki had manipulated the waves to act as a water shield ' _That was close, a little too close.'_

' _So he manipulated the waves to act as a shield against the blast. How annoying.'_ he flew forward.

' _I have to hurry and get him away from the island.'_ Onoki promptly flew away from the island, with Deidara following after him.

' _So he's trying to lure him away.'_ Shibuki looked down and noticed that Manda II was choking the turtle island, then looked and saw Kabuto a short distance away ' _So he must be the one who's controlling the giant snake.'_

Kabuto locked eyes with the snake emerging from his cloak and smirked "I see, so Naruto is actually inside of this turtle. Now then the question is, how do we get inside there?"

' _Now!'_ Shibuki charged in on his giant wave ' _Good thing he's so slow!_ **Water Clone Jutsu!"** he formed two water clones " **Earth Style: Dark Swamp!"** he formed a large mud swamp.

Kabuto leapt out of the range ' _The young leader of the Hidden Waterfall Village, huh?'_ then he looked back and smirked ' _So they've come as well.'_

Ino landed on the stomach of the turtle alongside Yamato and Motoi "From what I sense there should be 4 here, including these two."

' _The Yamanaka girl too huh?'_

"Thank you for the assistance, but I assure you I can take care of this!" Shibuki called ' _Then again, having said that.'_

"You're Lord Shibuki of the Hidden Waterfall right?"

Kabuto smirked "Perfect, now all of you can just take me right to where Naruto is."

Yamato froze when he saw the snake "That voice, then that means that you're… Kabuto Yakushi?"

Kabuto removed his hood "And so we meet again Yamato."

"I'll sweep him you're way, be sure to be ready to trap him!" Shibuki quickly blitzed through several hand seals " **Water Style: Liquid Trumpet!"** the water clone unleashed a jet of water from his mouth, spreading the mud swamp out.

Kabuto saw it coming and leapt over it, then frowned ' _I get it.'_

" **Fire Style: Dragon Flame Bomb!"** the original unleashed a strong fire jutsu to quickly dry out the swamp, essentially creating quick drying cement.

"Excellent work, now I'll finish it! **Water Style: Raging Waves!"** Ino unleashed a stream of water from her mouth and hit the trapped Kabuto dead on with it, encasing his entire body "Just to be on the safe side."

"Good, now you're all ours Kabuto. I'll go an extract his intel."

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Deidara and Onoki dueled in the air, with the former deciding to finish the battle using his C4 bomb.

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Once Yamato had used his Wood Style to create a safe walkway over the swamp, Ino walked over towards Kabuto "It's sad how far you've fallen Kabuto, you're looking more and more like Orochimaru these days."

Kabuto smirked "Never mind about me, you should just worry about not falling."

' _He's trying to distract me.'_

"Ino, be sure to concentrate." Yamato told her.

"I know what he's trying to do Captain Yamato, I'll be fine so don't worry." then she looked back to Kabuto "Let me remind you that my father is the head of the Intel Unit, I'm going to take a look now and I'll see everything that's happened to you."

"I wouldn't be too worried about that if I were you." Kabuto then proceeded to shed his skin, taking on a much more snake like form.

' _He's molting in order to escape! Has he really fallen that far?'_

Kabuto pushed Ino off and made a beeline for Yamato and the others.

"Motoi, get back!" Yamato used his Wood Style to push him out of the way.

Kabuto then captured Yamato in his mouth and made a beeline away from the group.

"Captain Yamato!" Ino charged after him and drew Samehada from her back "Come on girl, let's hurry. **Shark Scale Cannon!"** she fired a barrage of shark scales from Samehada's mouth.

Kabuto manage to swivel around all of them without much difficulty "I must say I'm impressed, not even Kisame was able to use Samehada to that degree." then he slithered into one of Manda II's nostrils, and the snake disappeared.

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Onoki led Deidara high enough so he could hit him with his Particle Style without harming the island turtle, until Deidara suddenly disappeared

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"Dammit!" then Ino gently patted Samehada on the head "It's alright girl, you did good."

"But they still got one of your ninja." Shibuki pointed out, then looked to see Onoki return "Oh Lord Tsuchikage, how did things turn out on your end?"

"Not good, Deidara got away from me." Onoki told him "How did you fair? What happened here?"

"Nothing good. We were all set to interrogate Kabuto, but he escaped and managed to capture Yamato in the process."

"So the assailant didn't go after any of the jinchuuriki? Then it's hard to tell if he was after Yamato or if he was simply after any hostage that he could then interrogate. Either way, we'll have to worry about the intel that your comrade possesses."

"With all due respect sir, I doubt Captain Yamato would be broken so easily." Ino told him.

"That's not the issue here, he's up against Madara Uchiha and his powerful visual jutsu. Once someone is caught under it, there's no escape."

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Having brought Yamato with him back to the Mountain's Graveyard, now planning to use the Wood Style chakra within him to make the White Zetsu Army even more formidable.

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Ino watched as Onoki was using his Earth Style: Super Lightened Boulder Jutsu to carry the entirety of turtle island through the air "This is completely unbelievable, Kage or not no living being should be able to do this." she received a growl from Samehada "I know, to think that one man is carrying an island this big is just insane." another growl "What is it girl?" she looked and saw the Hidden Mist Village in the distance "Looks like we're almost there. _And I guess that means the time has almost come. We're really about to go to war with the Akatsuki.'_ she then tightened her grip on Samehada ' _I'll have to give it everything I've got this time, no holding back.'_

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Naruto frowned as he stared up at the ceiling "The entire world just flipped over again. I don't get it, just what the hell is up with this crazy island anyway? Captain Yamato and Ino went outside to check out what was going on but Captain Yamato hasn't come back, you don't think something has happened do you?"

"From what I've been told he's still busy investigating the situation." Tatsu lied "It's nothing for you to worry about Naruto."

"But I finished the mission, now I want to hurry and go back home to the Hidden Leaf Village and get ready for the war."

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At the outskirts of the Akatsuki hideout, one of Anko's teammates, a Hyuga, used his Byakugan and discovered the White Zetsu Army.

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Naruto didn't take very kindly what he was now being told "Hey how come I have to stay inside here but the animals all get to go outside?"

Tatsu punched Killer Bee out before he could start rapping "The problem is that you haven't mastered your Kurama Chakra Mode and I haven't perfected my use of my Tenseigan, so we're gonna be training with the jackass and Utakata."

"Is it really that important?"

"Naruto you saw what I did against Zabuza, Gaara and Orochimaru, and that was like four years ago. Imagine what I'd be capable of now, and how you could potentially rival that level of power if you master your new Chakra Mode."

"...Well when you put it like that how the hell could I possible say no?"

' _Good, he took the bait.'_ he sliced up several blocks with the Dragon Blade "Now enter your chakra mode and stack those in a way where they won't fall over, without crushing them."

"Right." Naruto entered his Kurama Chakra Mode "Alright, here I go." he created a chakra arm and grabbed a block, only to accidentally crush it in the process "Woah…"

"And that is exactly what I'm talking about. _Still though, the fact that he couldn't even grasp the rock without destroying it.'_

"Dammit! Alright, let me give this another shot. Easy, easy…" he grasped the block with his chakra claw, instantly cracking it "Keep it together… gently…" he slowly placed it on top of another rock without breaking either of them "Hell to the yeah!"

"Idiot!" Tatsu smacked him on the head "You're not supposed to be satisfied with just moving one, don't forget that I said to move all of them. _This training should buy us plenty of time, even if he is progressing this fast.'_

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Tsunade stared out the window as she watched the turtle island come into view ' _So it's almost here.'_

"The time has come." Gaara noted.

A nodded "Looks like that old Fence Sitter has brought all of them here safely."

"Here's the plan." said Mei "We will hide the turtle island, along with the three remaining jinchuriki, back at the rear of our headquarters. Lady Hokage, do you have any objections to this?"

"No, it's fine." Tsunade told her.

"Very well, then I will go and welcome Lord Tsuchikage when he arrives." and she made her way out.

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Naruto was finally getting the hang of stacking the blocks using his chakra arms "Come on, stay put just like that, don't fall over." then the turtle island hit the water and the blocks all crashed to the ground "No no no no, son of a-"

' _He was really close that time.'_ Tatsu noted ' _It wasn't his fault they fell, the turtle island must have moved so that means we must have arrived.'_

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Onoki gripped his back in pain as they made their way towards dry land "Oh no, not my back again."

Shibuki knelt down beside him "I offered my help countless times Lord Tsuchikage, if you had just accepted then this wouldn't be an issue."

"Oh pipe down already will you?"

Then Mei came out "I bid you both a hearty welcome Lord Tsuchikage, Lord Shibuki. Please tell me, what is the situation."

"You need not worry Lady Mizukage." Shibuki told her "The jinchuuriki of the Six Tails, Eight Tails and Nine Tails are all safe. However, we were attacked and the Wood Style user guarding over Naruto Uzumaki was captured."

"He was taken? So you're saying that he wasn't killed? Well that means that the enemy will have more intel on us."

"For now we should meet with the others, Lord Tsuchikage and I shall explain more once we're inside."

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Soon enough, the groups were all in a meeting where they were discussing the situation and their plans.

Shikaku pointed to a spot on the map "This X here marks the location of the enemy's hideout, it's in a location known as the Mountain's Graveyard. If we go by land then we'll pass through the Hidden Steam Village and Hidden Frost Village."

"We should advise the nations of both villages to evacuate." Shibuki suggested.

"According to the Infiltration and Recon Unit there are a total of 100,000 enemy forces, when moving such a large regimen only a fraction is likely to come by sea but we'll be in a real bind if they surround us."

"Which means the victor will be decided by whoever makes the first move." Mifune finished for him.

Mei looked at Ao "Convene the main Commando Unit immediately, then have the main battle regimen divided up into multiple battle companies as well and have them run through their formations."

"Right." Ao promptly left.

Tsunade looked over at Shikaku "And make sure that the Logistics and Medical Unit is well supplied with medical ninja tools. Shikaku, go and help the Intel Unit check their chain of communication."

"Roger that." Shikaku left.

"Tsuchikage, Shibuki, these were just completed. Here are yours." Gaara held up two headbands with the kanji for shinobi on them "Take them."

"So they're ready." Shibuki noted "The headbands for the Allied Shinobi Forces. Excellent, very nicely done and quite fitting too."

Mifune nodded "Thank you, I designed the symbol myself. Former enemies who once battled against each other have been combined into one massive shinobi force, and this time we samurai shall ally ourselves with you shinobi as well. Now then, let us all get to work."

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Aside from the main divisions, there were also multiple other units:

The Commando Unit, with Kankuro as the leader.

The Medical Unit, headed by Shizune.

The Intel Unit, headed by Inoichi, was responsible for overseeing all communications.

The Sensory Unit, led by Ao.

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Choji looked around amongst the others "I heard that they were going to split all of us up into five main units but I figured that they were at least going to try and group us together by our villages."

"I wouldn't count on that." Shikamaru told him "Don't forget Choji, this is a war after all."

"He's right." Temari came up alongside him "This is no time for all of us to be competing with other villages."

"Yeah. The main regimens are made up of 5 units, each specializing in different areas of warfare. The First, the mid range battle regimen contains shinobi who excel at mid distance combat, like Ino with her water style and lightning style jutsu, or others like Tenten and Choza seeing how it's mostly those who specialize in weapons. The Second Company, close range battle units, specializes in hand to hand combat specialists, like Neji and Hinata. The shinobi in that unit will be fighting on the front lines. The third company, the intermediate range battle unit, provides support to the close range units. The shinobi there require speed and strength, so they have guys like Lee or Sasuke. We're the fourth company, the long range battle unit. We'll provide the link between the Intel Units and those on the front lines, and in addition we have to support the support units behind the lines. The Fifth Company, the special range battle unit, uses specialized ninjutsu and tactics."

"They have a special unit?" asked Choji.

"Yeah that's right, in war anything can happen so you have to be prepared. Sure we were all organized into units but it's all just wishful thinking to believe that each team will operate without a hitch all the time. Also, some units may find advantageous battlefield positions while others don't. Situations like that are where we rely on shinobi with secret ninjutsu."

"Well I can't say for sure that they've thought of everything." Temari commented "But still, considering that 88,000 shinobi have been organized into units this rapidly it seems that Shikaku Nara has done an amazing job. You know, you better not embarrass your dad."

"So this is really it." Choji muttered "The war is about to begin."

"Captain!" a voice called.

"That's our cue." following everyone else's lead, Shikamaru lined up, with Temari and Choji following his lead, just as the leaders of each company appeared "Captains of the First Company, the right hand man of the Raikage, Darui of the Hidden Cloud. Captain of the Second Company, Kitsuchi of the Hidden Stone. Captain of the Third Company, our very own Kakashi. Captain of the Fifth Company, general Mifune of the Land of Iron. The captain of the Fourth Company, our company, and also the Commander In-Chief of all battle units, is the Kazekage Gaara."

All of the shinobi started cheering. For about 5 minutes. Yeah, after the cheering died down everyone just started arguing amongst each other because of the grudges their different villages held for each other.

This was when Gaara decided to break it all up with his sand, almost immediately getting everyone's attention "In the name of gain and profit for the sake of one's nation and village, shinobi have hated and hurt each other for many years from the First to the Third Great Ninja Wars and the various conflicts in between. All of that hatred dried up for power, and it ended up giving birth to me. In the past I was hatred and power, and a jinchuuriki. I hated this world and all of the people in it, and I thought about destroying both. That's exactly what the Akatsuki is trying to do now. But then a single shinobi from the Village Hidden in the Leaves had stopped me. He cried for me, I was his enemy and yet he still cried for me. And he had called me his friend, even though we had fought to near death. He had saved me, we were on different sides but we were both jinchuuriki. Between those who have experienced the same pain, there can be no feelings of hate. There are no enemies here before me, because each one of us bears the pain of having been hurt by the actions of the Akatsuki. The Hidden Sand, the Hidden Stone, the Hidden Leaf, the Hidden Mist, the Hidden Cloud, and the Hidden Waterfall are no more. Now there is only shinobi, we are all simple ninja, and if you're still unable to forgive the Hidden Sand then you may come back and face me after this war has ended. The friend I spoke of who had saved me from my hatred, from my darkness, is now the target of our enemy, and if he falls into their hands then our world is doomed. I want to protect that friend, and I want to protect this entire world! I am too young and too inexperienced to do that, so I beg of you, of all of you, please lend me your strength for this battle!"

Everyone started cheering, and then they started apologizing for the squabbles.

"All of those who share the feelings I hold in my heart, FOLLOW ME!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

In the Akatsuki hideout, Kabuto summoned his undead army consisting of former members of the Akatsuki, previous Kage, the jinchuriki who died at the hands of the Akatsuki and a few others, and other famous and powerful ninja.

Now that all of their White Zetsu and reanimated shinobi forces had been assembled, Madara and Kabuto left the hideout, signifying the start of the Fourth Great Ninja War.

 **A/N:**

 **To reader R: While I understand your reasoning for choosing Shino, I meant I needed someone to give Naruto some more character development, and he and Shino just aren't that close.**

 **Also, as I'm sure that you're now aware, I deleted chapters 28 - 36, which is pretty much everything in the story after this. I started these Naruto fics back in July of 2017 because Naruto always had a special place in my heart, it wasn't my favorite anime but it was the first anime I ever watched, way before even the likes of Dragon Ball. However, after I finished this chapter back in October of 2017, I started to lose my drive for this story. It's still there, but it just comes and goes, and now that I'm in my second semester of college I've found that I don't have the time or the patience to work on it at the moment. But that's not to say that I don't intend to finish my Naruto fics at some point because I do, but I can't right now, which is why I've made a decision: I've cut out every chapter from 28 onward and I'm going to publish them in a new story at a later date, sometime around June or so.**


End file.
